Well there could be other reasons they didn't want us to know...
This is actually pretty standard practice with new games; companies can go bankrupt, loose funding, be bought and sold, or perhaps the technical challenges were underestimated and the task became too daunting. If things fall through, nobody wants to have the black mark of having announced something they couldn't make good on.
Most companies don't announce a game that's only 10% complete unless they have a 99% guarantee that they will have the freedom, funding, and expertise to complete it. Also, they usually wait until they have a reliable schedule for completion and release, so that they can market it properly.