During last year’s Tokyo Game Show, Keiji Inafune of Mega Man fame dropped the notion that the Japanese side of the gaming industry is on its way out, primarily due to becoming quickly overshadowed by Western development efforts. However, Square Enix producer Yoshinori Kitase and director Motomu Toriyama believe otherwise.

In a recent interview with PlayStation Europe, the two expressed their unified belief that Final Fantasy XIII — Square Enix’s latest big-budget RPG — has the potential to single-handedly resurrect operations in Japan. A bold claim, you might say, but they seem confident in this aspiration:

Some people have been saying that the Japanese game industry is dead, and all that… I dunno. I will say that Final Fantasy XIII is one really epic title for high definition consoles. With this game, we are going to resurrect the whole thing. As for Western games that have influenced us — FPSs mostly. The Call of Duty series, for example.

Further, the duo were asked about the possibility of remaking previously released PS1 titles on PS3, to which they replied would be a “huge task,” almost to the point of being “unrealistic.”  Does that shatter the hopes and dreams of a possible Final Fantasy VII remake? No one can say for sure, but we know now that one is looking extremely unlikely at this point.

Already out in Japan, Final Fantasy XIII makes its Western debut March 6 on Xbox 360 and PS3.

An Interview With Final Fantasy XIII’s Kitase And Toriyama [PlayStation Europe]

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