There are games that exist now that use wi-fi on the DS. I can not utilize wi-fi on my DS. Will I be able to make use of existing games' wi-fi on the 3DS? eg...will I be able to play DQ9 on the 3DS and use the wi-fi?

I don't see why not

I was pretty sure that the wi-fi connection was hardware specific and not game specific but I just wanted to check.

Online multiplay is game-specific. As in, only games with the Nintendo WFC logo on their box can be played online through the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. But the hardware which allows wireless networking is inside the DS whether the game supports it or not.

The 3DS will certainly have a wireless card inside it just like the DS does (hopefully - and probably - updated to support the new 802.11n standard) . Wireless multiplayer on the 3DS will definitely be backwards-compatible with DS games. So yes, DQ9 will be able to connect online just as if you had inserted into an old DS.

Can you not utilise wi-fi on your DS because you don't have a wireless router? Getting a 3DS won't solve that problem. You need a wireless network in the vicinity in order for your DS to connect to the internet.

The huge question is whether the 3DS will have a trick to enable WPA2-AES wireless encryption support for DS game cartridges which have only WEP support hard-wired into them. Based on Nintendo's past performance, I predict the answer will be "no".

i'm with Zaphod... i'm guessing there'll be no fix for DS games, though DSi/3DS games will have the ability to utilize other options than WEP.

Actually it does, just say. "Change security setting" and theres also the "Wi-Fi Protection setup" which I don't know what it is.

@R-L-A-George: source, plz?

@MERG:
Statement:
It won't work, anyone that says otherwise is wrong.

Background:
DS "games" cannot connect to anything with a higher encryption than WEP no matter what new fangled system they're played on since its hard-coded for the lowest common denominator.
DSi can connect to encrypted Wi-Fi higher than WEP, but only for games and software programmed with that in mind like the DSiShop/DSiWare.

Conclusion:
Thus, 3DS will not solve your wireless router encryption inability to connect issue.

Possible Workaround:
You can try temporarily removing the security on your wireless router to access internet in DS games, it wouldn't hurt, just remember to re-password protect your Wi-Fi when you're done or you can find an old wireless router like a Linksys WRT54G and daisy chain it to your existing setup (not really worth it just to connect your DS online).

Edit:
Realization:
The above method will not work if your DS simply has broken Wi-Fi. In that case, the 3DS question would be answered yes, as long as you connect to WEP or below for DS games.

Edit#2:
Further Realization:
Also, make sure that if the above is the case, wireless B compatible mode is enabled.

I thought wireless security settings were logically seperated from the game itself. The settings ARE saved in the system afterall (you only have to set your wireless up once). I didn't realise that you couldn't connect using WPA if you have a DS game in a DSi. Strange.....

The way wireless settings are coded into DS games is obviously different from DSi games. I think DS games can only check the 3 wireless networks you have set up (which only allow WEP) and ignore non-WEP networks, while DSiWare/DSi-specific games have access to the all of networks you can set up. There's no way they can change the network code that's already used on a cartridge.

Maybe it could emulate something, so one of the networks comes up as 3DS Network, and it uses whatever network the 3DS is connected to. But then, what happens when someone tries to delete that network..?

Go to advanced settings.

You can't fix it. I just checked it. My DSiware games and shop will support WPA but the DS original hardware which was transferred somehow to the DSi doesn't accept WPA. In other words new games will take WPA but old ones won't. Unless there's another method they decided not to use when building the DSi.

Yeah, doesn't work. If you use WPA security currently (and you should be using WPA security currently), then you can't play DS games online. DSiWare games work, because the DSi itself is capable of working with WPA security.

Even new DS cartridge games don't support WPA settings on a DSi. Well, the few news ones that I have tried don't.

Oh....
I really wonder why the new DS games are not made compatible with that.

i own call of duty: modern warfare (mobilized) for the ds. so it would be cool to play that game in a higher resolution on the 3DS