How do you count the score in Go?

Under the Chinese area scoring Playfulo uses, your score is your stones on the board plus the empty points surrounded only by your stones, and White adds 7.5 komi. Japanese territory scoring counts surrounded empty points plus captured and dead stones, usually with 6.5 komi.

Why is komi 7.5 in Go?

Black moves first and has an advantage, so White receives komi to compensate. Under Chinese area scoring 7.5 is widely used, and the half point prevents ties. Japanese territory scoring usually uses 6.5 komi.

Where should I play my first move in Go?

A corner is the most efficient place. The star point (4-4) favors fast development and influence, the 3-4 point favors stable corner territory, and the 3-3 point secures the corner at the cost of outside influence. Beginners should start with the star point and 3-4 point.

When should you tenuki in Go?

Tenuki when not answering your opponent's move leaves your group alive and connected and there is a bigger point elsewhere. If not answering would let your stones be cut or lose the room for two eyes, you should respond.

Go Opening Strategy and Scoring: Star Points, Komi, Counting

Corners, then sides, then center

The opening of a Go game follows one well-known principle: corners first, then sides, then the center. The reason is efficiency. In a corner, two board edges act as walls, so a few stones can enclose an area. On a side you get help from one edge, and in the center you have to build every wall yourself.

That is why the first several moves usually split up the four corners, followed by extensions from the corners along the sides. The center is where both players' stones grow outward and fights naturally happen, so stones placed there early rarely turn into territory.

Along the sides, the third line is known as the line of territory and the fourth line as the line of influence. Stones on the second line make too little territory, while stones on the fifth line or higher leave room for your opponent to slip underneath. Mixing third- and fourth-line stones is the basis of a balanced opening.

Your first corner move: star point, 3-4 point, 3-3 point

The most common corner openings are the star point (4-4, hoshi), the 3-4 point (komoku) and the 3-3 point (san-san). The star points are the marked dots in the corners. A star point claims a corner in one move and develops quickly toward both sides, but because it sits high, your opponent can invade at 3-3 and take the corner territory.

The 3-4 point secures corner territory more firmly than the star point. It often takes a second move to fully enclose the corner, so development is slightly slower. The 3-3 point secures the corner immediately, but it is low and tends to give outside influence to your opponent.

There are other points such as 5-3 and 5-4, but at the beginner stage the star point and 3-4 point are plenty. No point is objectively correct; what matters is knowing that the star point favors speed and influence, the 3-4 point favors stability and territory, and the 3-3 point favors a secure corner.

Star point (4-4): fast development and influence, vulnerable to a 3-3 invasion
3-4 point: stable corner territory, very solid after a second move
3-3 point: secure corner, weaker outside influence

Territory, influence and when to tenuki

Territory is area you can already count. Influence is a strong wall of stones that projects power toward the center or a side without being territory yet. A territory-focused player is stable but may run short of space; an influence-focused player has to use that strength to attack or build a large area to profit. When you have influence, attacking your opponent's stones near it usually pays more than trying to enclose territory right next to your wall.

Tenuki means ignoring your opponent's last move and playing a bigger point elsewhere. If you answer every move, the game only happens where your opponent wants it. When a move does not really need an answer, playing elsewhere is often right. But when a group's life is at stake, or when failing to answer lets your stones be cut into two weak groups, you must respond.

The test is simple: compare how much you lose by not answering with how much you gain by playing elsewhere. Early on, a useful rule of thumb is that if your group has room for two eyes and cannot be cut, tenuki is often fine.

Endgame basics

When most boundaries are settled, the game enters the endgame (yose). Here players push each border a point or two to gain territory, and small moves can decide the result. The key concepts are sente and gote.

A sente move forces a reply, so you keep the initiative afterward. A gote move lets your opponent play elsewhere next. For moves of the same size, sente is worth much more, and a double-sente point, sente for both players, should be played first. Hanes and connections on the first and second lines that fix the border are typical endgame moves.

After the endgame, fill the neutral points (dame) that belong to no one. Under the Chinese area scoring Playfulo uses, your stones on the board count as points, so every dame you fill earns one point. Passing first while dame remain can hand those points to your opponent.

How scoring works: area scoring vs territory scoring

When both players pass in a row, the game ends and is scored. Playfulo uses simple Chinese area scoring: your score is the number of your stones on the board plus the empty points surrounded only by your stones. White adds 7.5 points of komi, and the half point means there are no ties.

If every dame is filled, the 361 points are split between Black and White, so with 7.5 komi Black needs at least 185 points to win. For example, Black 185 and White 176 gives White 183.5 with komi, and Black wins by 1.5. Black 184 and White 177 gives White 184.5, and White wins by 0.5.

Japanese territory scoring, common in Japan and Korea, counts surrounded empty points plus captured and dead stones, usually with 6.5 komi. Under that system, filling dame earns nothing and playing inside your own territory costs a point. The two methods almost always produce very similar results, but the details differ, so know which rule you are playing.

Playfulo's scoring is a casual automatic count, so complex situations like dead stones or seki may be handled differently from tournament rules. It is safer to actually capture your opponent's dead stones inside your area before passing. Under area scoring, playing inside your own area does not cost points, so this cleanup is free.

Chinese area scoring (Playfulo): your stones + empty points surrounded only by you, White gets 7.5 komi
Japanese territory scoring: surrounded empty points + captures and dead stones, usually 6.5 komi
Under area scoring, filling dame earns a point and playing inside your area costs nothing

Common opening and scoring mistakes

Mistakes in the opening and endgame rarely lose a game in one move, but they leak points steadily. Check yourself against this list.

Starting in the center: it is much harder to make territory there than in corners and sides.
Overconcentrating stones: piling stones in one area wastes moves while your opponent takes the rest.
Answering every move: responding where tenuki was possible keeps handing over the initiative.
Using influence only to make territory: influence is strongest when used to attack.
Playing gote before sente: for the same size, sente endgame moves come first.
Passing before filling dame and removing dead stones: under area scoring you can lose a point per dame, and the automatic count may work against you.

Planning a full game step by step

Here is the flow from opening to scoring in one list. Keeping it in mind helps you know what to focus on at each stage.

Step 1: Take empty corners with the star point or 3-4 point.
Step 2: Extend along the sides, mixing third- and fourth-line stones.
Step 3: Attack weak enemy groups; if your own group is weak, secure eye space first.
Step 4: Tenuki from moves that do not need an urgent answer and find the biggest point on the board.
Step 5: Once borders are settled, play double sente, then sente, then gote endgame moves.
Step 6: Fill dame, clean up dead stones inside your area, then pass.

Practicing openings and scoring on Playfulo

Playfulo's Go uses a 19×19 board with simple Chinese area scoring and 7.5 komi after two consecutive passes, so you can see exactly the counting method described here. Try alternating star point and 3-4 openings against the easy, normal and hard practice AI, then look at the final count to see where the points were won or lost.

You can also invite a friend by link and each pick a different opening style, which is a good way to find out whether territory or influence suits you better.