With both the Halo 4 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 releasing just eight days apart, November 6 and November 13, respectively, the decision on which shooter to buy is a toughie. According to research firm Nielsen, almost 5000 interviewees saw Halo 4 as the most anticipated Xbox 360 title of 2012.

For Xbox 360, Halo 4, Black Ops 2, and Assassin's Creed 3 (releasing October 30, 2012) make up the three most anticipated titles. All three titles are bringing a fresh approach to the franchises: 343 Industries is revamping the multiplayer in Halo 4, along with the return of Master Chief; Treyarch is introducing choice into the Black Ops 2 campaign, with a mini-RTS game that influences the ending; and Ubisoft is taking Assassin's Creed into the American Revolution, bringing new weapons and a new protagonist consequently.

Black Ops 2 topped the chart for PlayStation 3, probably because Halo 4 is exclusive to Xbox 360, with Madden NFL 13 and Assassin's Creed 3 taking second and third place, respectively. The surprise packages may come in the form of the titles Far Cry 3 in 11 and Hitman: Absolution ranked 13.

For Wii, despite the Wii U releasing by the 2012, Just Dance 4 tops the chart followed by Madden NFL 13 and Just Dance: Disney Party. It'll be interesting to see how many Wii-only gamers move to Wii U, especially the casual players who are attracted to titles such as Wii Sports and Wii Fit that removed the intimidation a controller might bring.

Why Halo 4 tops the charts

As mentioned, 343 Industries is making Halo 4 feel like a next-generation title in the series. Along with the returning Master Chief and Spartan Ops, the episodic co-op campaign, the developers have hinted towards Cortana heading into rampancy due to her 8-year life span thus far (her life runs for 7 years, or should). A new enemy class is being introduced, called the Prometheans, and Chief and Cortana are landing on a Forerunner planet called Requiem. The introductions mean that while the Covenant is scattered across the planet a new threat is emerging.

Nielsen affirmed that "Consumer data was derived from online interviews of 4,823 male and female active gamers ... between the ages of 7 and 54".

"Active gamers" mean people that own at least one current generation console and buy and play games on that console. The Nielsen data collection ran from June 3 to June 30, beginning the day before E3 2012. Owing to this, Nielsen disclaims that "consumer measures may shift further as marketing efforts heat up over the rest of the year."

The "marketing efforts" could affect Wii's titles, with Nintendo bringing in games such as New Super Mario Bros. U around launch, as Nintendo President Reggie Fils-Aime called out to fans who wanted a Mario title alongside new consoles.