Well, I played a couple of the NES ones as a kid and then the last one I played was on PS2 and honestly, not much had changed. To give you perspective, it was first person, turn-based combat with random encounters and a no-frill job/class system. Enemy portraits are stills with just a couple of animations. The cast consists of a bandit, a princess, a knight, and a mute hero who are trying to stop an evil vizier who's cast a curse on their traditional medieval kingdom. In other words, it's all very 1989. Which isn't to say it's not a charming series. I'd imagine the new game isn't all that much different, although I hear that the focus is more on customization and multiplayer. I don't have time for that kind of commitment, but could see how it would be fun on a handheld.
Hope that helps.
