Game of Go – Software

(Prices mentioned in what follows were recorded in August 2004 and obviously are subject to possible change.)

Kogo's Joseki Dictionary is a set of SGF records illustrating an extensive Joseki dictionary. It's a handy tool and it is free.

qGo is a Go client and full featured SGF editor. It is a viewer program and does not itself play Go. It is free.

MultiGo is an SGF editor and viewer. It is free.

Go Game Assistant is a Go viewer program and does not play Go. The program is particularly adept at reading and writing Go games in different formats (SGF, UGF, etc.). It is shareware, meaning it can be downloaded and tried out for free. It costs US$ 29 to register your copy.

CGoban2 is an SGF viewer and also serves as the Go client program for the Kiseido Go Server. It is free.

gGo is an SGF viewer and also serves as the Go client program for the Internet Go Server. It is free.

Jago is an SGF viewer and also serves as a Go client program for the Internet Go Server. It is free.

TanGo is an SGF viewer and also serves as a Go client program for the various Go servers. It is free.

GoodShape is a Java applet that can be installed in your website and used to display recorded Go games. It does not play Go itself.

SGFSaver is a screensaver program that plays back Go games stored in SGF format.

Kombilo is a go database program. Its main purpose is to search for games in which a given pattern or position occurs. It is free.

BiGo Assistant Databases contain records of thousands of professional games, permitting Joseki and Fuseki searches.

TurboGo is a Go-playing program, a Go screen saver and a Joseki database. It is free and it is authored by the gentleman to the left.

EGo is a Go-playing program that claims to have a strength of about 12 kyu. It costs US$ 25. Bruce Wilcox, on the left, is the author.

Go++ is another Go-playing program, costing $US$ 40. It is authored by the chap on the left.

SmartGo is a good Go-playing program. The 9x9 version and the viewer program are free and the full version including 27,000 professional games costs US$ 84.

Many Faces of Go is another Go-playing program. The 9x9 version (called IgoWin) is free and the full 19x19 version costs about US$ 90. Mr. Fotland, on the left, is the program's author.

Jellyfish Go or WinHonte is yet another Go-playing program.

Indigo has done fairly well in international Go-playing competitions.

Check out the results of the 9th Computer Olympiad 2004 in Ramat-Gan, Israel. Programs called "Go Intellect", "MFOG" and "Indigo" had the best results at 19x19 Go. The Computer Go Ladder is also worth a look, as is the web site of the International Computer Games Association.

The British Go Association has an excellent Go software catalogue.

Compiled, developed and maintained by Philip Smith