head to head
vs
Vintage StoryvsWasteland 2
Vintage Story leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Wasteland 2 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Vintage StoryWasteland 2
Axis by axis
Execution3 vs 2
Vintage Story leans harder on execution: Combat has deliberate timing; temporal storms add pressure
Reads0 vs 1
Wasteland 2 leans harder on reads: All enemy factions use scripted behaviour with no player adaptation
Variance5 vs 5
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
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.