The whole "requires all 8 players or no match" seems dumb in the long run. Hopefully that can be patched later on. As for communication, I expected as much :/
COD BLOPS still has over 1000 players online at times. I see no real issues with this.
You could be transmitting "SOS" calls using just a quick poke on the gamepad's map to get your teammates over to specific areas.
To do what, you are dying almost instantly when hit?