I get why it feels like a cardboard box; game balance.
But when you've hyped yourself up to getting to finally pilot one but can get absolutely toasted moments after getting into it if you're not super careful takes the fun out of piloting the thing.
That's on you then. I always use them for the extraction and absolutely love them. Once you understand that it isn't invincible and use it more as a walking chair with 2 big guns it's incredible. You can solo a bunch of chargers and bile titans without a problem.
You have to consider them more of a light-armored weapon platform as opposed to a beefy tank. And having a squad around you prioritizing rocket assholes is a must if you use it vs the 'bots.
As long as the goddamn missile pod doesn't spontaneously and prematurely detonate inside then yeah, it's very good.
The minigun doesn' overheat and shred through anything unarmored so you basically have 1000 rounds to go nuts with. 12 rockets if you're good enouhg with your aim can kill a Bile in two shots to the head. Even against bot it can still take quite a beating, until Rocket Devastators join the chat and these fuckers never join alone.
As long as the goddamn missile pod doesn't spontaneously and prematurely detonate inside then yeah, it's very good.
The minigun doesn' overheat and shred through anything unarmored so you basically have 1000 rounds to go nuts with. 12 rockets if you're good enouhg with your aim can kill a Bile in two shots to the head. Even against bot it can still take quite a beating, until Rocket Devastators join the chat and these fuckers never join alone.
You can even combine it with a shield backpack for some extra survivability.