Quote - ...they probably should have shot for something like 2,000-5,000 with clothing modeled onto the figure ...

While I agree that they could've done better, 2.5k poly figures would get you something akin to what you would find in Unreal Tournament 2004 (those particular meshes weigh in at around that size).

5k would just barely be the low-end for something that could look passably human in a render nowadays (just IMHO). 7.5k (w/ clothing pre-built on) would be the sweet spot for long-distance shot people, and 10k good for medium (e.g. across a large foyer) distances.

/P