Titanodon

Very uninformed take tbh. It can be summarised as "it does not appeal to me based on a surface level understanding therefore it sucks".
 
While IKEMEN features an optional new code language more akin to traditional ones, it is not required, so CNS can still be used and supports all the new triggers, sctrls, and parameters; what the new language offers is code optimisation, temporary variables, functions, and loops, among other things. You're looking at it from the perspective of a player/spectator and not a developer, so obviously the plethora of new features aimed at developers are meaningless to you, but a godsend to them. MUGEN is terrible for actual game development, in part because of all the hardcoded features (that are freely editable in IKEMEN!), but also because you can't even sell the finished product (there's IKEMEN games already on Steam!).
 
Is not being able use cheap characters really an issue? That particular brand uses memory exploits that cannot (and should not) be made to work engine-side because neither engine shares any compiled code, so it's all different under the hood and the memory addresses don't align. You'd face this with any MUGEN clone.
 
If all you want to do is watch A.I. cockfights then stick with MUGEN. There isn't anything any engine could offer to enhance that experience.