head to head
vs
Total War: Rome IIvsV Rising
Total War: Rome II leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); V Rising leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Total War: Rome IIV Rising
Axis by axis
Execution5 vs 6
V Rising leans harder on execution: Twin-stick action combat precision
Reads3 vs 4
V Rising leans harder on reads: PvP servers reward reading raids
Variance4 vs 2
Total War: Rome II leans harder on variance: Random political events and dynastic loyalty shifts add campaign variance
Optimization8 vs 8
Even - both lean on optimization about the same.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.