About Go
Go is over 2,500 years old and is often called the world’s deepest board game, even though the rules can be learned in five minutes. Black and White take turns placing stones on the points of the board, and the aim is to surround the most territory. On GameBase, the board sits on the iPad between you, and each player’s buttons face whoever sits on that side.
The game keeps track of the rules for you: stones with no liberties are captured, suicide moves aren’t allowed, and the ko rule stops the same stone being captured back and forth. When you both pass, you mark the dead groups with a tap, and once you’ve both approved, the game counts the score with 6.5 points of komi for White.
New to Go? Start with the small 9 × 9 board and the short guide How to play Go. Choose Japanese scoring with territory and captured stones, or Chinese scoring with territory and stones on the board.
How to play
- Type in your names, choose the board size and whether you want to use Japanese or Chinese scoring.
- Black goes first. Tap a point to place a stone. If you take a group’s last liberty, you capture it.
- If you can’t improve your position, pass. When you both pass one after the other, the game is over.
- Tap the groups that are dead, and both tap Approve. Then the game counts up, and White gets 6.5 points of komi.