Enterbrain conducted a survey of Japanese gamers about their network gaming habits, and the DS came out as the console with the most frequently used network features. 89.6 percent of respondents used network features at all, and within that category 21.6 percent did so on the DS. It beat the second-place console, the Wii, by only 1.9 percent. The most-used feature (41.6 percent) was online gaming.
We don't know if "network feature" refers only to Wi-Fi or also to local wireless multiplayer; we suspect the latter, and that the popularity of DS networking has a lot to do with the popularity of the DS itself in Japan. We imagine that many of the respondents who used networking on other consoles also owned DS systems, because everyone owns a DS.
No matter if it's someone's only system or just what they play on the trains, that's a lot of Bark Mode! Stop by our next Game Night and support online DS gaming in other regions! You know, just in case someone takes a survey.