I am very sure that the Arms AI is cheating, and I am not the only person who thinks so.
I’m not saying this because losing to a game’s AI is a little embarrassing. Actually, Arms‘ AI is remarkably robust. At higher levels, it is always one step ahead of me at every moment, much like AIs in fighting games like Tekken 7. The Arms AI’s reflexes are slick and, frustratingly, it’s always readied some perfect counter for even my most clever moves. That’s normal — it’s a computer. Not normal is how it appears to break the game’s physics engine to pummel me over and over again.
I swear I’m not crazy. There’s a whole conversation going on in the Arms community about its AI. Last month, a Redditor noticed that “when I activate my special while the CPU’s arms are being extended, the CPU somehow immediately enters a block without having to retract the arms again,” something I and many others noticed too. Commenters debated whether Arms‘ AI is just as precise as other fighting games’ or whether, by doing stuff humans can’t do, it’s shady and unfair.
I spent an hour looking for potentially game-breaking behaviour while playing against Arms AIs ranging between levels five and seven. And here’s what I found:
I can’t wrap my head around the way it can magically retract its extended arms to block me, or how an arm can appear half-extended to foil a grab.
Arms
Arms
I can’t understand why its arms nearly always take priority in situations where it should be more ambiguous. Playing against a high-level Arms AI, it feels like the game reluctantly cedes to you in fist-to-fist situations only when you land perfect direct hits (and the AI’s fists seem to be much luckier).
Arms
Arms
Also confusing is how its arms seem to block my attacks after they have hit.
Arms
Arms
Nintendo declined to comment when asked whether Arms‘ AI is doing the 2017 equivalent of GameSharking, as they did when our Maddy Myers asked whether Mario Kart 8 Deluxe‘s AI cheats, too.
Unlike in Super Smash Bros., players can actually grind against Arms‘ (cheating) AI and level up in accuracy and dexterity. That’s good. But playing against a broken AI can also make the game less fun. An AI’s difficulty should rely on proper strategy, not hacking.
Comments
3 responses to “I Swear Arms’ AI Must Be Cheating”
In other words, the developers were unable to make the AI more challenging without allowing it to cheat.
It’s definitely cheating 100%.
I don’t mind being beaten by AI. But I friggin hate being beaten by tactics that are supposed to be outside the games physics etc.
Another cheat they use……seems sometimes Hedlok is Damon near impossible to beat. I had him down to a slither of life left…..hit him multiple times for no damage etc.
Love the game and hope they fix this.
I hate when games do this. I stopped playing Fifa Ultimate Team due to this. I remember having one game to win a tournament and suddenly everything is working against me. The computers team would commit red card tackles and get nothing where I looked at their players funny and my guy would be sent packing. Every shot drilled off the bar or the keeper pulling off impossible saves that would normally go in.
The worst was when my defender ran out to retrieve a ball he was going to get 100% only for him to be shunted away from the ball by some invisible force and leaving a big gap for their striker to get the ball instead and score. I managed to win that tournament in the end after multiple resets but it was enough to stop me from playing it further. So I have no doubt you are absolutely correct that the AI is cheating you in this game.
Making balanced yet hard ai is really difficult. Making an enemy satisfying in a game where both parties are meant to be on equal ground is even worse.
The easiest example I can give is Escape from Tarkov where over two patches we went from hopeless ai that were easy loot to elite marksman that pretty much prefire (walls can be shot through) and throw perfect nades over walls at moving enemies they have not seen.