Originally posted by: Chris_Xion
Im not buying that roninchaos.They upgraded Freedom to SF,Justice to IJ,Impulse to Destiny,Providence to Legend,so someone must have had the common sense to upgrade Duel and Buster,like say...Duel to Deathscythe Duel or Buster to Heavyarms Buster,im not saying they should use those names,but i juz luv the thought of Yzak owning everyone(except Kira and Athrun) in a Gundam with Beam Scythes,deflectors or black stealth wings,or Dearka using a Gundam with Dual Beam Machine Cannons...
They did upgrade Buster and Duel.

They called the result a Zaku. The new generation Grunt suits are only Grunt suits because most of the people pilotting them lack the amazing skills of the main characters. The only gundams which are STRICTLY better than Zaku's/Windam's/Murasame's, and espcecially Goufs, are those which are Nuclear powered. Other than that, its all pilotting.

NOTE: While gundams are generally more heavily armed, their weapons essentially amount to a custom loadout. Having 15 beam cannons on Abyss really doesn't do it much good if it can only hit one target at a time. Not to mention that a precision shot from a single beam rifle kills a target dead as well as a volley from a Gundam, without wasting all that power. Also, as has been said, Phase Shift armor is a minor advantage now that beam weapons are the norm and not the exception.

That said, Yzak's skills are going to waste without a top of the line, Nuclear powered testbed mobile suit. I'm guessing the only reason that he wasn't issued Strike Freedom or Infinite Justice is because of his past history with the Three Ships Alliance.

Dullindal probably wants his potential to interfere limitted by giving him the weakest mobile suit Yzak can stand. I'm sure he's pissed to hell at his Zaku's limitations, but I'm sure he's happier there than in Duel.