Little Go 4+

Outstanding (learn the setting)

While out of the box the computer will mercilessly defeat a beginner, this is a FREE amazing learning tool. You MUST read the instructions and understand how to adjust it to your skill level otherwise prepare for a very uneven match that will make the most stubborn challenger want to give up. After tweaking I found the features quite useful and the game is now addictive in ways i can only describe a three hours of satisfying gameplay I that was traded for sleep or time with my family.

Fun Learning Tool

As a beginner, I have a lot of fun with this app. Even on weaker difficulty, I really struggle to keep up with the AI, and that’s great. Anytime I mess up I will consistently get harshly punished and it has really opened my eyes to the weaknesses in certain play styles. I’ve learned so much from this app and I’ve gotten to watch the margin of loss drop more and more as I keep playing. Sometimes it is frustrating to lose all the time, but every game I learn something and get a little better.

I noticed that the game is open source, but I haven’t gotten a chance to check out the algorithms used. It surprises me that there isn’t a way to tweak the difficulty level to easier levels, as that’s usually pretty easy to do from a developer standpoint. I’ve read that Fuego uses MCTS to make its moves and there should be parameters one could tune to make playing a little easier.

Thanks again for this tool, its really great!

Developer Response ,

Oh, but there are *so many* options to tweak the computer player‘s strength!

First of all you can play against the pre-defined computer player „Fuego (weak)“, which is substantially weaker than the default player that is just named „Fuego“.

Second you can change a large variety of options in the profile that is behind a computer player. 1) Call up the settings screen. 2) Select "Players & Profiles". 3) In the lower section titled "Profiles" select the profile you want to change. At the bottom you see which computer players use that profile. 4) Near the top of the screen you can select between five different preset playing strengths. 5) For a deep dive select "Advanced configuration". The in-game manual (available under „Help“) tells you what each setting does. 6) When you have finished changing a profile start a new game and make sure to play against one of the computer players that uses the profile. Enjoy.

MUCH TOO HARD, not fun at all

Give up. You're going to lose. You were going to lose within the first few moves. Even with the engine on the weakest setting, you are going to lose badly, very quickly, every single time. It is not fun at all. Don't even bother playing. You lose. And in case there are some random chance you might accidentally win, don't worry, the computer gives itself seven points ahead of you, even though you don't get a handicap with extra pieces to start like you're supposed to. Or, if you find a very well hidden the setting that allows you to get a couple of extra pieces is a handicap for the other player, the very first time you take one of its pieces, it simply resigns. So, I hope you like losing, and losing badly, because that is all that's going to happen in this game. If you think having even the slightest chance of winning is fun, forget it, because it will quit the minute it thinks there's even a tiny chance you will win. You lose.

Developer Response ,

Thanks for your review. It mercilessly but truthfully points out what are probably the main shortcomings of the app: 1) The default profile is too strong for beginners. 2) The computer player does not always act as a human player would, this is especially obvious when it comes to resigning. 3) The app is too technical for the casual user. Although configuration options exist that allow the user to weaken the computer player down to a suitable playing strength and to change its resign behaviour, these options are not available at a single, easy tap, but must be found and explored by an investigative user. Although everything is documented in the in-app manual, reading the manual requires a significant amount of time.

Apart from point 1 there's not much I could or would change, though. Sorry for that, but you will have to find a different app that suits you better. A final word regarding komi and handicap: You can easily adjust those when you start a new game. Please take the time to have a look at the settings in the "New game" screen.