I won’t recount the tragic tale that sealed the fate of promising the developers as 38 Studios and Big Huge Games here. That story was sad, this one makes me angry. Speaking to Game Informer,  EA Labels president Frank Gibeau laid this one on the world:

I think it’s unfortunate how everything worked out [for 38 Studios]. At the end of the day, we saw a lot of creativity and vision in the team that Curt [Schilling] put together. We thought the game was terrific. It reviewed well.

Now, had EA ponied up a publishing deal back in March, you know, when they turned the game down, maybe a few people would have been able to keep their jobs. As it stands, the very talented group responsible for the original game is largely scattered amongst other developers. In any event, the ownership of the IP remains unclear, so this is most likely just a PR move by EA to make nice with disgruntled fans.