As is noted elsewhere, the original heroes in the prologue of the first game speak much more formally than either the main characters or their own selves in the prequel. This is given an in-universe explanation: In the prologue of the first game, you are playing the final battle as it was retold by the survivors and recorded in history; in the prequel, you are playing the final battle as it actually happened.
The legendary armor is, statistically, a step down from the armor you can purchase at Narvick. This actually makes sense - since who knows how long has passed since the legendary armor was crafted, humanity has had time to craft more physically durable stuff; however, they couldn’t duplicate the unique IP abilities or the status protection.
Since the part about Maxim changing the course of Doom Island couldn’t have been recorded in the annals of history, this means Artea and Guy were always operating under the assumption that Maxim let himself die on Doom Island, either directly or by starvation or dehydration. Not a fun thought to be carrying around about your friend.
