Mortal Kombat X is a fine singleplayer fighting game. There is a standalone story mode, but it builds rather heavily on the plot foundations of the story mode in MK9, so if you haven't already played the previous entry a lot of the narrative stuff might not make sense. X's singleplayer campaign clocks in at a time considerably shorter than 9's, though it tells a mostly-new story. 9's, by contrast, was a retelling of the original trilogy--though it spins off into its own weird thing with some deliberate continuity changes. I preferred MK9's campaign, since it hits the nostalgia notes, does some cool things to the lore, and is a lengthy, fulfilling experience that feels worth your time by the end.
However, I'm probably an outlier, because on just about every other discussion point I feel like MKX is the superior game, even for solo players. NetherRealm's development team hit a serious groove with Injustice, and that only continues with Mortal Kombat X. It is tighter, faster, and more responsive than 9 in nearly every way, so the moment-to-moment combat always feels top-of-class.
Mortal Kombat X, like most fighting games, offers a singleplayer "Arcade" mode, which puts you in front of a handful of increasingly difficult fighters ("kombatants?"). This ends with a final boss fight and a cutscene relevant to the character you're using. It's standard fare. And to be honest, it isn't my favorite way to play these games.
Instead, I prefer the game's "Single Fight" option against the AI, an option first added in Injustice two years earlier. (Read: This option DOES NOT exist in Mortal Kombat 9. Outside of the story, you MUST play the Arcade ladder to spar with the AI.)
In Single Fight, you can choose your opponent and relative difficulty level, playing and rematching until you're blue in the face. The characters and their multiple playstyles create a myriad of interesting matchups. Single Fight, frankly, gives solo players a great opportunity to learn one or many characters, as well as their many strengths and weaknesses, in a painless environment. It's the perfect place to experiment, find a favorite fighter, or simply relax and beat some people into the dirt. And I can't stress this enough--the core fighting feels GREAT, so you're never without a fundamentally satisfying loop.
Largely, the AI on its default setting is pretty fun to fight. Enemy fighters block in realistic ways, mostly, but also leave themselves open to your hard-hitting attacks frequently enough. You'll have to apply some minor strategy to beat the AI reliably--mostly in the form of knowing how to avoid or mitigate an enemy's assault--but generally beating the AI isn't an arduous task. On Hard and Very Hard, the AI can be borderline telepathic, reacting to your inputs as you're pressing a given series of buttons, which doesn't always provide for the most rewarding of experiences. Occasionally playing on Hard emulates the flurry and speed of playing of a real person, though the AI never learns or makes exploitable mistakes the way a human in the same situation might.
There are other things I'm not mentioning. MK9 had a 300-fight Challenge Tower that was replaced by daily/weekly/monthly towers in MKX. The fights included were usually modified by silly circumstances. Fighting upside-down or only with the use of projectiles. X's towers don't have the same handcrafted feel as 9's Challenge Tower, but neither of those offerings appeal to me.
If you can get Mortal Kombat XL, the expanded edition that includes all of the game's DLC, for a reasonable price, there really isn't a glaring downside. Even offline, the game has a lot to offer, especially as far as fighting games go.
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