Even though I'm a big fan of JRPG's I have to agree. I don't have any huge problems with the lack of innovation, but unless the genre evolves I think it'll become more and more niche.

Big words coming from a developer whose games went backwards with times. CJust compare Baldur's Gate to Mass Effect and KOTOR to see just how far a step back they had to make when ti comes to depth. Even Dragon Age is really shallow compared to Baldur's Gate and NWN.

However, I do agree with him though, even if he has committed a worse crime (dumbing down instead of just stagnation).

Story -  sparkly emo teenagers saving the world

Characters - re-imagined from the previous games, nothing radically different.

Gameplay - selecting commands from a menu

Environments - again, re-imagined from the previous games.

This is not just the case with FF but with every last JRPG out there!

What do BioWare know about quality JRPG? I rather play Lost Odyssey and Valkyrie Chronicles over again then play another 1 hour of Mass Effect.

Jrpgs have been pretty weak this gen but next year, things will be different. Final Fantasy 13, Persona 5 (maybe), White Knight Chronicles, Valkyria Chronicles 2 and Resonance of Fate will make BioWare eat their words.

This seems true to me albeit a bit extreme.  That is why they have been losing my interest. 

Also, I would argue that GTA IS as much an RPG as any FF or DQ game.  Just because the leveling doesn't exist doesn't mean that there isn't a LOT of role playing there.  Hell, you can play the character ANY way you want.  That is the definition of RPG.  Contrast that to games the force you down the same path in the same way, but DO have stats and traditional elements (hello Final Fantasy). 

http://www.movietome.com/users/Humikimi/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25743264

I think this blogger has some interesting views about why jrpgs need to evolve. The one thing I really agree with was his statement that 85% of the battles in most jrpgs (most of the non-boss battles) are boring. I have been saying the same thing before. Jrpg developers need to design their game so that combat is fun throughout the game. Not just boss battles and a few non-boss battles here and there. Jrpg fans will be quick to point out that stuff like Tales has action (though I don't necessarily agree that real-time is better than turn-based. I preferred Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey and even Enchanted Arms lol to ToV). But when you compare something like Bayonetta to Tales of Vesperia, it's no contest. Running through hoardes of baddies in a good beat-em-up/hack-n-slash makes the combat in games like ToV seem vanilla. Bayonetta has done a whole lot cooler things in like 30 mins than Yuri did for me within 50 hours.

Oh... a JRPG basher. How nice.
The reason JRPGs are not as popular in the west right now as they were in the past is because of trends. WRPG are probably gonna be the next genre to take over the west. They're already blending them with shooters (the most popular genre of the moment) to make the transition easier.

No they don't , FF7-FF9 has similar battle systems. FFX went back to the past with turn-based combat, and X-2 was similar to FF7-FF9. The only innovative title that tried to reinvent itself was FF12, but was shunned by longtime fans for having a too mmo-like battle system.

It is very true. JRPGs suffer from many small things.