yeah, the AI would read your inputs and react without frame delays (contrary to input generated by the user).
there was even some code that would reduce the chance of that happening depending on many coins you placed in the machine
The AI in MK was always notoriously 'cheap'. I remember it was impossible to perform a throw on the AI. They would always throw you instead. You could even go so far as to freeze the AI using Sub Zero's freeze move, attempt the throw, and they will still throw you while they were frozen.
It's surprising the lengths they seemed to have gone to make the single player experience not fun. I know the goal is to get more quarters in the machine, but it felt like the wrong way to do it.
The 2 player competitive experience was where these games shined. It's just a shame that there was more potential for a fun single player. Regular MK3 I always found to be fun against the computer, even though the difficulty ratchets up as you climb the tower.
