But the city/state philosophy demands that every project be committed to delivering a reasonable expectation of profitability. It's a performance commitment that binds us together and ensures we have the resources we need to invest back into our people and creative output. Finally, when EA announced our quarterly earnings last week, John and Warren referenced facility closures. We had planned to include Chicago in that communication but a personal tragedy in the studio - the death of a colleague - resulted in our delaying the announcement out of respect for his family and friends. I apologize for any confusion or concern that caused." Gamasutra has reached out to Electronic Arts for further information on the layoff and will update if any further details become available. [ UPDATE : Gamasutra spoke to Electronic Arts VP of Corporate Communications Jeff Brown about the change, addressing a number of issues regarding the layoffs.