@SythisTaru @joel0903 The point is that no matter how good the graphics are, or the campaign is, by far more people play the Halo franchise for Rumble Pit than any other reason. Ignoring the most popular part of the game - which came out 2 weeks before another very popular franchise will 1- hurt sales as potential customer's attention turns to Black Ops II and 2 - cause those customers to remember how ass-backwards the role-out was when it comes time to purchase the next Halo. Those people who bought Halo 4 and then have to wait and wait to play their favorite game types, some to the point where they'll be playing BOII instead (and instead of urging their gamer friends to hurry out and buy Halo 4) will remember this when the time comes to purchase Halo 5 - which will raise the bar that much higher for that game. It was a stupid marketing move - there's no getting around that. The most popular part of Halo games is Rumble Pit. That is why most people want to play Halo. It should have been available on launch day. The rumors on the 720, and the leaks all indicate a launch next fall. Which means that Halo 4 will be the last release for the current console. The new console roll-out and a new Halo game for the 720 could encourage buyers to buy the game - but, if we factor in that there is likely to be a minimum of a year (and possibly two) between the 720 debut and the release of Halo 5, what customers are more likely to think about is 'man, they messed up Halo 4's launch.. didn't even have slayer playlists' is going to lead to problems with sales - particularly if that thought is followed by 'Black Ops III comes out next week'.

Or, simply look at it this way - which is more likely to interest more gamers/purchasers and keep them interested: FFA Slayer or Flood?

If they don't get a slayer ffa playlist in Halo 4 right away (30 days at the way, way, way outside), they can kiss 5 and 6 goodbye. Fans won't forget how they got screwed on Halo 4. 30 days out is probably too long, especially with Black Ops 2 out this month. Talking to the local game stop, people are already returning their HALO 4 games.