I think they managed to avoid cyberpunk levels of disaster.. but it's a bit early to call victory.
I've been playing it quite a bit, and sure I'd love more maps and at first the experience seemed to be given too slowly, but the gameplay itself is pretty rock solid and it's the most time I've put into any multiplayer shooter in a long time.
Easily played it more than the last few Call of Duties, Valorant, and Fortnite combined, and more than I played any Halo game since Halo Reach.
Also, if I had to pay $60 for it, I might not have tried it for quite some time, since I haven't really gotten into the past couple of Halo games. It being free made me go "sure what the hell, let's try it."
I even paid the ~$10 for the battle pass, something I never usually do, but I felt like I had enough fun with it it was worth tossing them $10.
I am a big fan of the series and think they've done a fantastic job with the game, aside from some rough edges. The open world campaign especially has been a really cool experience so far.
What bothered me though is I don't think those raging fans are totally off point. And the 343 and MS response rubs me the wrong way. Not only on Twitter, but this article is (to me) a naked PR attempt to control the narrative and do some damage control. As much as I enjoy the game, there are still flaws, it was massively delayed, they haven't released forge, and calling it a "triumph" without first establishing a record of success comes off as pompous.