What scoring does it use?

Area scoring, as in Chinese rules: your stones plus your surrounded empty points, with 5.5 komi for white.

Does the computer play well?

It is a friendly opponent that reads captures and groups in atari, but it will not beat a strong player.

A position that would repeat an earlier one. Those moves are blocked, so you must play elsewhere first.

Go on a small 9 by 9 board against the computer: surround territory, capture stones and count the area. Learn Go in one sitting.

Go Nine

0% · Getting ready

A real run of the game, recorded with captions and no sound.

You play black and move first on a 9 by 9 board. Tap an intersection to place a stone; the computer plays white.
A group of connected stones with no empty neighbouring points (liberties) is captured and removed. You cannot play a move that leaves your own group without liberties unless it captures, and you cannot repeat an earlier board position.
Pass when you have nothing useful to play. When both players pass in a row the game ends.
Scoring counts stones plus the empty points only one colour surrounds. White gets 5.5 points komi for moving second. The higher score wins.

Controls: mouse or touch. Made by CalcoTools.

On a small board, the centre and the points near it matter most. Avoid the very edge early.
Keep your groups connected, and count liberties before you press an attack.
A group needs two separate empty points inside it (two eyes) to live.
Pass only when you have no good move left: the computer will keep playing until it is ahead.

What scoring does it use?: Area scoring, as in Chinese rules: your stones plus your surrounded empty points, with 5.5 komi for white.
Does the computer play well?: It is a friendly opponent that reads captures and groups in atari, but it will not beat a strong player.
What is a ko?: A position that would repeat an earlier one. Those moves are blocked, so you must play elsewhere first.