As a DM, once initiative is rolled, I do not keep track of player AC, or any number on their sheet for that matter. I have a vague idea of their hit points, but I have a lot more going on on this side of the screen. Remembering if the fighter is holding their shield, or if someone has some special modifier applied to them is taking up unnecessary bandwidth. So I can take a guess that 29 hits your AC, but I always want to make sure.
Depends on your system. I've not actually played a TTRPG where that's how crits worked. I believe that's how it works in PF2E, though, which I really wanna try. Just can't manage to convince the nerds I play with.
Pathfinder. For people that play D&D and think “I wish this had more complicated rules…”
But yes, that’s how crits work in Pathfinder - if you beat the target number by 10, that’s a crit success. Conversely, if you miss the target number by 10, that’s a crit fail.
Add item, status, circumstance (e.g. flatfooted which adjust your AC by -2 or cover which increases it) bonuses and you get the actual result of a check.