head to head
vs
Rise of the Golden IdolvsSam & Max: Hit the Road
Rise of the Golden Idol leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Sam & Max: Hit the Road leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Rise of the Golden IdolSam & Max: Hit the Road
Axis by axis
Execution0 vs 1
Sam & Max: Hit the Road leans harder on execution: Cursor-driven; no reflexes tested at any point
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance3 vs 2
Rise of the Golden Idol leans harder on variance: Hidden roles and motives form layered investigative uncertainty
Optimization10 vs 8
Rise of the Golden Idol leans harder on optimization: Closed-world deduction chain converges to exactly one correct answer per scene
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.