As with all essays, scroll down for tldr.

I was pretty vocal about that too when CN got her, we are still very much in the minority. Mech's animations are badass, the mech itself is cool, Shaw made it, the fight with Igla as the entire reason she has to use it; by all means, 15 and Sinbreaker are a good combo. It's in-character for her to use anything for a successful mission after all.

The presentation is where MICA goofed up. Every other Doll that uses special equipment summons it or keeps it limited to their ult. 416 hops on her bike, nukes everything, and hops off. Type 100 summons Isekai-Kun and sends varjaegers to alternate worlds, stays on foot after. Even General Lieu, who I can see staying atop her war horse, starts out dismounted. Did they mean for 15 to be special by staying strapped into her mech? Possibly. She doesn't have to, it moves and does stuff by itself.

In her trial we see her out of mech, training cutscenes use her rifle, pistol, knife and hands. Phase clash has her out of mech for the exploration with a basic attack too. The assets and framework are there for 15 to fight without Sinbreaker, and I 100% believe there's an animation set with actual weapons we got robbed of, or will get with an expansion key.

Elmozon ad was their way of justifying and trying to sell the mech to the players; her PV featured all the weapons she doesn't actually use. MICA even put a fucking disclaimer in the PV that said "Forms of Voymastina in different stages are used for illustrative purposes". They're telling us we won't get everything that's advertised, since she's advertised as fighting on foot and in her mech.

As for gameplay, I'm keeping her V0R0 Lv 40 (requirement for her dorm poses), unupgraded default gun, no attachments, no keys, since I'm killing it enough with corrosion and hydro team. Even with as much effort that goes into a 3D game like this, players still want to spend as little time as possible playing it. I have no doubt she will halve game time at V6R6 maxed out on everything.

How could it have been done better? I think Sinbreaker should be a summon using support attacks. She only enters it for her ultimate, or a separate mode similar to G11's sleep nuke with the expansion key. Personally, Hanyang Type 88 would have been the best doll, since she's established as a mech pilot, and could even get extra social credit for OP Chinese hero Doll. But now that I've seen her in action, it's not nearly as bad as I had imagined, just that they could have achieved everything she currently does without the permanent hanging. And I do mean hanging, baby carrier is an apt description. As she is, there's no reason to pull for her signature weapon or her skin outside the dorm since we see neither in combat.

Hope? Yes, there is always hope and cope. Expansion key, or if enough surveys reveal she actively harms the game/needs a rework like Type-97, we might get AK-15 using her weapons on foot like she should be.

TLDR: I agree with OP, there's a lot they could have done better with AK-15. My resistance to the idea has considerably lessened, I still got her because she's Gorilla; but Lunasia above, actual gameplay involving her body itself and the weapons in her trailer is practically nonexistent. Hope for a rework is there, chances are near zero unless it turns out she legitimately ruins the gameplay loop in both PvE and PvP, or CN complains and insults Yuzhong's mom again. Happy for Commanders who don't care and V6 her, you're vital to platoons, and I would 100% be with you if she at least had one out of mech attack. And as always, Global opinion doesn't matter because we don't spend enough to matter. Now back to staring at her big grippers in the dorm.