Developed during the middle stages of the Calamity War, the high mobility Hugo is primarily for space use. It is unsuitable for walking under gravity due to the feet having extremely little contact surface with the ground. Designed for medium and close-range combat, most of its weapons are for supporting its allies instead of single combat with opponents. Despite this, it is capable of fighting on its own if required; its specialty is capturing the enemy with its shot anchor claws and/or leg claws and then finishing off with its handheld melee weapon.

To retain mobility, the Hugo have less armor than most mobile suit, leading to most of them being shot down during the Calamity War. However, thanks to its cockpit being located in the head, its pilot have an easier time bailing out, resulting in higher pilot survival rate. The Hugo's Hexa frame has also been improved with reverse-jointed legs, which have auxiliary motors placed at the back of the knee. This not only allows the suit to use them like arms, but also increase the motion torque of the leg claws.