Coding a 2D JRPG?

One of my long time goals was to write a simple, modular 2D JRPG engine in C; and then write modules to handle assets, scripting, and mechanics similar to my favorite FF games. After that I would write scripts to rip the assets from said games and format them for use in my engine.

Does this seem like the right way to do a clone? There is a lot of potential for engine reuse between FF 1 through 6, though combat and menu sub-modules would differ.

I don't have things set up to do this right now, but it is in my 2 to 4 year planning horizon. I just want your thoughts on it, and to see if it makes for interesting discussion. I'm especially interested in discussion of how these games are structured.