With so many great RPGs for the DS, there's really no reason to suffer through this updated 1980's era action RPG.
So... yes, Ys I & II were updated. The new graphics look great -- the sprites are colorful, detailed, and smoothly animated. The backgrounds are also detailed and up to snuff with many DS RPGs. The music, though repetitive, is appropriately epic and nice. Character close-ups are classic Anime style, and artfully done. The game LOOKS and SOUNDS great.
The gameplay, however, is classic 1989... Let's face it, RPGs, and particularly action RPGs, have come a long, long way in 20 years. Ys is fun at some level -- it offers basic run-n-click action, some loot grabbing, and general action RPG mayhem. However, by today's standards, it feels very one-dimensional. The characters and storyline are classic 1989 as well -- we're a person from another land, washed up on shore of a cut-off region of the world besieged by a curse of sorts... Certainly something we've seen and done 20 times in games. Skip to Ys II... we're a person from another land, washed up on shore of a cut-off region of the world besieged by a curse of sorts... Sigh.
So while this game is a budget title (you can get it for $20 new), I still would argue you can do better. Spend the extra $10 and get something like Izuna, Lunar Knight, or even Orcs and Elves (now very cheap also). This game may be classic, but it's more "old" than any other RPG you'll play on your DS.