Some strategy tips
In brief
These are tips, not rules: each depends on the position. The examples come from the annotated game, played by the app's computer.
- Black
- White
- possible move
- disc just placed or square highlighted
- disc that was just flipped
Corners Depends on the position
A disc in a corner can never be flipped: no line can bracket it. Here, White has 10 moves; the app's computer chooses the h1 corner at every level (Easy, Medium, Hard).
In this game, the corners are taken in this order:
- h1, by White, on move 16
- a1, by White, on move 50
- a8, by White, on move 56
- h8, by Black, on move 60
Squares next to the corners Depends on the position
Placing a disc next to an empty corner, especially diagonally (b2, g2, b7, g7), often gives your opponent a way to take it. The app's computer rates these squares as bad while the corner is empty.
Keeping moves available Depends on the position
Having many possible moves gives you a choice; having few forces you to play bad moves, or even to pass. The app's computer counts this difference in its evaluation.
Don't count too early Depends on the position
On move 51, Black leads 41 to 14. But White holds corners and safe edges, and Black is about to run out of moves: Black ends up passing and loses 18 to 46.