The director of Final Fantasy VII has admitted that while he "would love to" create a HD remake of the game, there are a number of obstacles standing in the way.
Speaking to Eurogamer in his capacity as producer of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Yoshinori Kitase admitted that he would love to do a remake, but it would be an enormous undertaking.
"I can honestly tell you I would love to do that," he said. "If you simply ask me if I personally would like to do that, yes I would. Definitely. There's no lie about it. But you must believe me when I say it would take a lot to happen."
Two of the biggest issues are apparently "staff availability and budget" which, given the epic scale of the game, makes sense. The development time required to recreate the world at the standard fans want would likely rival even Final Fantasy XV at this point. But Kitase also explained there's another reason he hasn't pursued a remake of the game: he's not actually motivated enough to do it, as it would be such a huge commitment.
"Even if I casually say I would like to do that, because it would be a huge project I would have to motivate myself to the level that I really am prepared to take on this huge responsibility," he said. "I don't know if those three things will happen simultaneously. It has to tick lots of very big boxes. I won't rule out the possibility, but it would take a lot to make it happen.
"But should I ever take it on, it would have to be the biggest project I've done. My life work. So I would have to be as highly motivated as that to end up with something I'm very happy with. It's a huge thing for me."
Elsewhere in the interview, Kitase admitted he had no knowledge of a HD remake of Final Fantasy XII being planned, though he said if the team that created it thought it was a good idea, then it could happen.
Demand for a HD remake of Final Fantasy VII has been high ever since a tech demo was released for the PS3. Since then, former company CEO Yoichi Wada said the game wouldn't be remade until a fresh entry in the franchise surpasses it in quality, a statement that was echoed by Tetsuya Nomura.
