Play Go online

Black and white stones, a wooden board, and one aim: surround more of it than the computer does. Pick a computer from Easy to Master, go first or second, and the game is counted for you once the board is settled.

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How to play

  1. Choose a computer — Easy, Hard or Master — and whether you go first or second. Black always goes first.
  2. Click a point where two lines cross to place your stone. On a phone, tap once to pick the point and again to place it.
  3. Surround the computer’s stones so they have no empty point beside them, and they are captured.
  4. The game ends by itself once nothing left on the board can change, or when both sides pass in a row. The board is then counted — stones plus surrounded empty points, with 7.5 to white — and the bigger total wins.

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Logic

Go

Surround empty points and capture stones on a 9 × 9 or 13 × 13 board. The bigger area wins.

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Why play Go here

Three computers that play differently. Easy plays loosely, so you can see how captures and territory work and win your first games. Hard plays out thousands of games in its head before every move, and Master about three times as many on a bigger 13 × 13 board; both resign a game they can see no way back in.

Every game ends with a clear result. Once nothing left on the board can change, it is counted for you, so you never need to know when to pass, and with 7.5 points to white for moving second there are no draws. On a phone the first tap picks a point and the second places the stone, so a stone never lands on the wrong crossing.

Frequently asked questions

How do you play Go?

Two players take turns placing a stone on any empty point where two lines cross, black first; here you choose whether to go first with black or second with white. A stone or connected group with no empty point next to it is captured and taken off the board. At the end each side scores its stones on the board plus the empty points only it surrounds, and the bigger total wins.

Is Go the same as Weiqi, Baduk and Igo?

Yes, they are names for the same game: Weiqi in China, Baduk in Korea and Igo in Japan, where the English name Go comes from. The game here uses the Chinese way of counting, stones plus surrounded points (area scoring).

Why a 9 × 9 board and not 19 × 19?

19 × 19 is the full board, and a game on it takes far longer. Easy and Hard play on 9 × 9, where a game takes minutes and the same rules and tactics apply; Master plays on 13 × 13. There is no 19 × 19 board here.

How does a game end, and who wins?

The game ends by itself once nothing left on the board could change who owns what, or when both sides pass in a row. The board is then counted: stones on the board plus surrounded empty points, with 7.5 points to white for moving second, and stones that could not escape capture count as captured. Because of the half point there are no draws. Hard and Master also resign a game they judge to be lost.

Which computer should I choose?

Easy plays loosely and is the one to learn on and to win a first game against. Hard plays out thousands of games before each move and punishes loose stones. Master plays out about three times as many, on a 13 × 13 board, for experienced players.

Is my game saved if I leave?

Yes. A game in progress is kept in this browser on this device, so closing the page and coming back later picks it up where you left it. It does not carry over to another device.

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