head to head
vs
Squad 44vsWarcraft II: Tides of Darkness
Squad 44 leans Execution (Grand Arena); Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Squad 44Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 6
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads6 vs 5
Squad 44 leans harder on reads: Anticipating enemy squad pushes and flanks decides battles
Variance3 vs 3
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization6 vs 7
Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness leans harder on optimization: Refined build orders and upgrade timings are studyable
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.