Will Batoo ever be an optional game variant available on OGS?
A link of what it was, for those who may have seen the short lived korean attempt to make a more go variant that would appeal to younger audiences more familiar with online gaming.
I wish I had somehow been able to try this, it looks fun. Go will always be my favorite game, but I’m not sure the game in its current form could ever birth a “twitch speed” chessbrah type fanbase, which is too bad as I think that guy’s channel plus lichess are keeping chess strong online.
but i think this game is too advanced for ddk, because you have to read out normal moves and watch out for the hidden moves
which means much more reading skills is involved
so in the end, maybe 9x9 just owns this variant because 9x9 is good/fun for all levels
anyways, those are just my opinion
it would be fun to have them here though, just probably not getting too much action for it
The 3 original stones are kind of a base for each side, and each of them worth more than normal (5 points for keeper/capturer). After that the game progress relatively as normal (25s/move) with some additional rules that would further add or subtract point for person who violate/satisfy them.
Counting rule seems like Chinese rule to me (you get point for your stones + territory). Some stone (like the base stones) worth more point than other, and likewise some territory intersection worth more, and some intersection would be “minus point”
That last link actually has Gu Li playing batoo in it.
Komi bidding and hidden stones on a timed 11x11 board seem to be interesting twists in my opinion. It looks like it is faster, more oriented towards fighting, and a little flashier for a crowd to watch. In any case, it seems like it could be something fun to play here.
In my opinion there are 2 things that keep Go from being as attractive to younger people as chess can be. Go takes time and it is very subtle. It can be hard to recognize what is going on in go until it is too late for beginners. Unfortunately this is part of what makes Go really beautiful for me, but I think it keeps beginners away.
Internet bullet chess is fast and crowd pleasing. Chess is very destructive… you are always killing things. This is less complex than go, but easy for people to pick up. Batoo strikes me as offering some of these characteristics that are enjoyable for beginners as well.
Is there anywhere with a complete written description of the rules and mechanics? A lot of resources, including Sensei’s Library, are a bit vague about how the game specifically worked. This would of course need to be known in order to implement anything.
I understand that Batoo is now defunct. If the aim is to generate quicker games for a broader audience, I’m not sure if additional mechanics really helps to make Go more accessible, and I would rather just see strong player play 9x9 under rapid time settings. I think the best way to improve accessibility is to have great and well-produced commentary.
There’s a scoreboard on top of the interface that keeps track of your points during the game. There are specific intersections that make you gain or lose points during the game.
Every player places 3 stones at the beginning of the game (a base). If you and your opponent occupy the same spot, it will become empty once the game commences. Before the placement is finished, your opponent can’t see where you’re building your base.
There is no komi. Players bet points before the game starts, whoever bets more gets to go first.
Probably the most interesting concept are the “hidden”- and “scan”-feature. Each player can place a hidden stone on the board. It will remain invisible to the opponent until it causes some kind of effect (killing a stone, connecting a group that would die,…). The scan-feature allows you to (only once in a game) guess if the hidden stone is on a specific intersection you choose."
Not sure I really care picking characters in the game (lol), but the rules seem super interesting.