Considering the Crosstrek isn't a Seltos, that's a big, tall assumption. Both Subaru and Kia pull throttle when in taxing situations. The performance of one doesn't need to track the other being that the same persons likely didn't design the powertrain control and traction control algorithms. Neither did the same person design the transmissions. It's pointless to make assumptions. I can definitely state that Kia has been putting automatics in more capable AWD offerings.
Back to the original question. What does the Sportage offroad aftermarket look like? It's been out for quite some time and how many lifted Sportages do you see? It clearly has a better transmission for offroad than the Seltos. How about the aftermarket for the Hyundai Kona CVT?