Meißner Tremonia make pastes which, when cured, become soaps. Therefore, the pastes are malleable but not soft like Proraso. More like the latest instalments by Castle Forbes. The soaps are hard. The performance (latherability, glide, cushion, skin care) is, as far as I can tell, exactly the same across both product types and the entire product ranges. Which is nice. If you like one, you can buy any other with confidence. Personally, I would go for the soaps, but then again, I generally prefer soaps to creams because I find them easier to handle.
Again, be careful with the scents. Thomas Meißner is a self proclaimed scent maniac, and some of them are quite unique. Like with any high quality product, they will not linger, though. Think Castle Forbes in terms of intensity and longevity. If in doubt, and if you like mint, menthol and eucalyptus, get that one. It gives more expensive products like Proraso or Santa Maria Novella a run for its money (but not Savonnerie du bon Berger), and is one of the best mint/menthol products I have ever tried. Thankfully absent are nonsensical gimmicks like "feels like an ice bucket challenge". Just a nice tingling and cooling effect, plus a subdued, pleasant smell.