Choose a mode in the sidebar: Human vs Human (two players share the mouse), Human vs AI (pick your color and the AI level), or AI vs AI (pick a level for each color and watch). Choose a board size — 9×9 is recommended for learning — set komi if desired, and press New Game. Black always moves first.
Everything is mouse-driven. Hover over the board to preview a stone, and click an empty intersection to play it. Sidebar buttons: Pass skips your turn, Undo takes back the last move (in Human vs AI it takes back the AI reply too), Resign concedes the game. In AI vs AI mode, Pause halts play.
Black plays first, then players alternate. You may pass instead of playing. There is no limit on game length except the board filling up.
Stones are placed on the intersections of the grid lines, not the squares. Once placed, stones never move — they can only be captured. You may play on any empty intersection except: a point where your stone would have no liberties (suicide), or a play that would repeat a previous board position (the ko rule).
A group of connected stones is captured and removed when its last liberty (adjacent empty point) is filled by the opponent. Captures are shown in the sidebar counters. The game uses area (Chinese) scoring: your score is the number of your stones on the board plus the empty points only your stones surround. White adds komi (default 6.5) as compensation for moving second.
When both players pass consecutively, scoring begins: click any group to mark it dead (it becomes translucent and counts as the opponent's territory), then press Accept Score. The higher score wins. You also win immediately if your opponent resigns.
You lose if your final score is lower than your opponent's, or if you resign.
There is no save feature in this release — games are played in a single sitting. Press New Game at any time to restart; changing the mode or board size also starts a fresh game. If scoring was entered by mistake, press Resume Play to continue.
Start on 9×9 against the Easy AI. Corners are the easiest territory to hold, then sides, then the center. Don't try to capture everything — surrounding territory wins games. A group with two separate eyes can never be captured.