Go Magic

Some News From Korean Go: Shin Jinseo at the Top & Kim Eunji's Record 🏆 Summer has ended, a new season is starting, and here are the latest updates from the Korean Go scene! 👑 Shin Jinseo: 81 Consecutive Months at #1 Shin Jinseo 9p continues his absolute reign at the top of the Korean rating list (and world rankings). Going undefeated (5–0) throughout August and securing a spot in the quarterfinals of the 6th MLILY Cup, he reached a staggering 10,418 points in the Korean rankings—the first player in Korean history to pass 10,000. He has held the #1 spot since January 2020, the longest streak on record. ⚡ Kim Eunji: First Female Pro to Reach 500 Wins in Her Teens! 19-year-old Kim Eunji 9p just set a historic milestone by defeating Park Taehee 4p in the Korean Women’s Baduk League With Kim Eunji leading all Korean pros in total games played and wins this year, the future of competitive Go is moving at lightning speed. #gogame #weiqi #baduk #Korea #GoNews #ShinJinseo

🚀 Big Release: Play Go Against a Bot Right in Your Browser! We are thrilled to announce a major update on Go Magic! You can now practice and play against our computer opponent directly on the platform—no extra software required. Everything you need is gathered in one convenient setup panel. Everything you need is in one setup panel, from a quick 9×9 game to a full 19×19 match. 🎮 Three Game Modes — and you won't find the last two on any other Go server: Classic Go! Atari Go: The perfect starting point for beginners. Same board, one simple goal: capture! Survival: A thrilling challenge — save your group or destroy the opponent's. How to start? The entry-level difficulties are completely open to everyone—no account needed, just click and place a stone! Stronger opponents run on Energy, which comes free with a Go Magic account and refills daily. 👉 Challenge the bot right now: https://gomagic.org/play-go/ #gogame #weiqi #baduk #boardgame

🚨 LAST CALL! The 40% OFF sale ends in just a few hours! Our Back to School sale is officially wrapping up today. Don't miss your final chance to grab premium Go courses and memberships at a huge discount. Sharpen your mind and level up your game before the season changes! 🍂 💬 Code: STUDY40 👉 https://go.gomagic.org/XIC8z5 ⏳ Offer expires tonight!

What if we made a Go course just for kids? We need your thoughts! 👧👦 Recently, we talked about the incredible benefits of Go for a child’s developing brain—from boosting focus to acting as a natural "digital detox." Now, we have a question for you! We are thinking about creating a brand-new Go Magic course designed specifically for children. But before we start planning, we want to hear from the community. 👇 Tell us in the comments: 1️⃣ Would this be useful for you — as a parent, a teacher, or a club organizer? 2️⃣ What features are a MUST? (Fun animations, bite-sized lessons, interactive mini-games, printable worksheets?) Let’s build the perfect learning experience together! #gogame #weiqi #baduk

🔥 New Course Release: Shin Jinseo vs KataGo! Ten years after AlphaGo, humanity takes on the machine once again! Join Vadim Efimenko 4d as we break down the spectacular 2026 match between the world's strongest human, Shin Jinseo, and the ultimate AI, KataGo. With a two-stone handicap and a time advantage for Shin Jinseo, this match was designed to answer one question: How much have humans learned from AI in the last decade? Are we closing the gap? 📚 6 lessons: all three games of the match, plus a second section on other handicap games against AI — and whether AI really knows how to play them. ✨ Level: 11 kyu – 9 dan (A perfect follow-up to our AlphaGo course!) 👉 Check out the course here: https://gomagic.org/courses/shin-jinseo-vs-katago/ ▶️ Watch the First Lesson for Free: https://youtu.be/1eL8QdbeCUA #gogame #weiqi #baduk #boardgame #AI #KataGo

The AI Go Games Nobody Understands 🔥 When DeepMind released the 50 AlphaGo vs AlphaGo games in 2017, the Go world was ecstatic. But that enthusiasm didn't last long. Soon, professional players realized they were watching an alien species play a game that barely resembled Go anymore. Fast forward to today, and the biggest AI Go Championships barely get 100 views. Why did we lose interest? In this video, we dive into the bizarre, unpredictable, and mind-bending world of modern AI Go games. New Go Magic video! 📺 https://youtu.be/182e6i0nuC4 #GoGame #Baduk #Weiqi #BoardGame #AI

🧒 Why Kids Need the Game of Go In an era of smartphones, fast-paced video games and 15-second videos, children’s brains are constantly bombarded with instant dopamine. As a result, parents and educators are seeing a sharp decline in children's attention spans and impulse control. Here is what modern science says about how playing Go transforms a child’s developing brain: 📵 The Ultimate "Digital Detox" 🧠 Supercharging "Executive Functions" ✨ A Scientific Breakthrough for ADHD Want to give your child a tool that builds patience, logic, and a healthy brain? Introduce them to Go! ⚪⚫️ Sources include: Tachibana (2012) — The impact of Go on the development of executive functions, memory, and spatial visualization in healthy schoolchildren. Kim, Han, et al. (2014) — Clinical efficacy of 16-week Baduk (Go) training for drug-naive children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), including EEG normalization and reduction of inattention symptoms. https://go.gomagic.org/XIC8z5

🎒 Back to School... and Back to Focus with 40% off! The lazy summer days are over, and it’s time to get our brains back in shape! Whether you are packing backpacks for the kids or just looking to sharpen your own mind for the cozy evenings ahead, September is the perfect time to learn something new. Go builds patience, strategic thinking, and a sharper mind — for your child this school year, or for you. Level up your Go skills with our massive Autumn Sale! ✨ 40% OFF all memberships and courses 💬 Promo code: STUDY40 👉 https://go.gomagic.org/XIC8z5 ⏳ Don't miss out—offer is valid through September 6th!

Go: The 4,000-Year-Old Game That Rewires Your Brain Go (igo in Japan, weiqi in China, baduk in Korea) takes just 5 minutes to learn, yet it holds more possible board positions than there are atoms in the observable universe. Lately, neuroscientists, psychologists, and doctors have been putting Go players into MRI machines. It turns out that Go isn’t just a fascinating hobby—it’s a powerful cognitive tool that physically upgrades the architecture of your brain. Here is what science says about how playing Go changes you for the better: Emotional Control MRI scans reveal that experienced Go players actually decrease the volume of their amygdala—the brain's center for fear, stress, and panic. The game physically trains your brain to suppress impulsive reactions, switch off anxiety, and maintain a cold, calculating mind even when your strategy is falling apart. The Science of "Gut Feeling" Have you ever wondered how Go masters can just feel the right move? Brain scans show that long-term practice literally rewires

🐑 Sheep vs. Wolves: A new board game that secretly teaches you Go! 🐺 Remember when legendary Lee Sedol created Great Kingdom to bring Go concepts to a wider audience? He isn't the only professional working hard to simplify the entry into the game! Meet WOOLVES, a new 1v1 asymmetrical board game designed by Japanese professional Go player Satoshi Yanagisawa 6p. The goal is to teach the true essence of Go to absolute beginners without overwhelming them with complex rules. And the concept is brilliant! 🎯 How it works: The Sheep Team: Your goal is to defend the central lamp for 10 turns. You can work together to surround and capture approaching wolves. The Wolf Team: Your goal is to break through the defenses. If a wolf reaches the lamp and survives for one turn, you win! The best part is that the pieces are placed on the intersections, just like in Go. Without even realizing it, beginners naturally learn core Go concepts like surrounding, cutting, and sacrificing. But it's not just for beginners—even 9-dan pros enjoyed testing it to hone their reading skills! The project is currently crowdfunding on the Japanese platform CAMPFIRE until September 30. It hit its target within four hours of launching and is now at nearly 500%: https://camp-fire.jp/projects/949683/view. Would you use this game to introduce Go to your friends? #gogame #weiqi #baduk

The Open Skirt: The Most Misunderstood Shape in Go | Benjamin Dréan-Guénaïzia 1p 🔥 Are you struggling with the Open Skirt shape? You're not alone! It's one of the most misunderstood concepts in the game of Go. If you block too early, you overcommit. If you reduce too passively, your opponent takes over the board. Join 2022 European Champion and EGF professional Benjamin Dréan-Guénaïzia 1p in this full, in-depth lesson as he reveals how pros navigate this tricky dilemma. Using positions from real games, Benjamin covers when to block, how to safely reduce, and why pros often ignore the "obvious" moves. New Go Magic video! 📺 https://youtu.be/UWv5FnBZ77c

Black to play. Connect the weak stones. 🧠 Share your solution in the comments! 🌳 Skill tree with Go problems to train your Go skills: 👉 https://go.gomagic.org/y0VbNh #gogame #weiqi #baduk #tsumego #goproblems

Every time at the Go club 😁 #gogame #weiqi #baduk #meme

🎬 New Go Movie: "Harukana: The Go Board Knows, So Please Don't Throw It Away" "Harukana" (Japanese: ハルカナ～碁盤は知っているので捨てないでください～) is a touching film shot in Kagawa Prefecture, based on an award-winning script from the 6th Sanuki Film Festival. The film was directed and written by Masakatsu Ishida. The creators' main goal is to show the depth of Go and the beauty of communication across the board, even to viewers who know nothing about the game. 🎉 The First Screening Has Already Taken Place! The premiere screening was successfully held on August 18 in the Nihon Kiin Tokyo Headquarters. Three sessions were held that day, officially launching the film's national tour. #gogame #weiqi #baduk

Why Beginners Lose on 19x19: A Complete Game Review 🔥 You’ve mastered 9x9 and 13x13, but the 19x19 board is a whole different beast. Suddenly, the games are longer, and the opening feels confusing. But don't worry—we've got you covered! New Go Magic video! 📺 https://youtu.be/p3HuNZfS0B4

🎬 Ready to conquer the big board? More Game Reviews — on 19×19 (Part 1) is Out! ✨ You’ve learned the rules and mastered the fundamentals. Now, it’s time for the ultimate Go experience: the 19×19 board. If you’re used to playing on smaller boards, this transition will be quite a change! 👉 Start Part 1 here: https://gomagic.org/courses/game-reviews-2/ In Part 1 of this course, Vadim Efimenko 4d begins breaking down several 19×19 games of varying difficulty so you can learn exactly what to look out for. New openings, new strategies, new middle-game principles — and, inevitably, new mistakes. We start with games where bad attachments and passive play get punished. And by the end of the full course you'll be able to review your own games without a teacher. ✅ Suitable for: 20k – 10k players who have already played a handful of games on 19×19. ▶️ Watch the First Lesson for Free! Not sure if you're ready for the big board yet? You can watch the full first lesson on our YouTube channel right now! 👇 👀 https://youtu.be/p3HuNZfS0B4 #gogame #weiqi #baduk #boardgame #Learning #Course

Black to play. Find the urgent move. If nothing is urgent, play the biggest move instead. 🧠 Share your solution in the comments! Not sure how to solve this? Master the board with "The Main Principles of a Glorious Opening". Learn to navigate the opening and evaluate every move like a pro! 👉 https://gomagic.org/courses/the-main-principles-of-a-glorious-opening/ 🌳 Skill tree with Go problems to train your Go skills: 👉 https://go.gomagic.org/y0VbNh #gogame #weiqi #baduk #tsumego #goproblems

🔥 The Go Magic August 9x9 Online Tournament is Here! 🔥 Let’s make this August fun! Jump in for another round of our fast-paced 9x9 tournament. It’s the perfect chance to test your reading skills, hang out with the community, and win some prizes! 🗓️ When: August 22, 19:00 UTC ⏱️ Time control: 5 min + 7s/move (~ 1.5h total) 🏆 The Prize Pool (Go Magic Gift Cards): 🥇 1st: $100 | 🥈 2nd: $80 | 🥉 3rd: $60 🏅 Special Prizes: 6 wins = $50 | 5 wins = $30 👉 Secure your spot and read the rules here: https://online-go.com/tournament/143310 📅 Add to your calendar: Google: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/render?action=TEMPLATE&dates=20260822T190000Z%2F20260822T210000Z&details=&location=&text=Go%20Magic%20August%209x9%20 Outlook: https://outlook.live.com/calendar/0/action/compose?allday=false&body=&enddt=2026-08-22T23%3A00%3A00&location=&path=%2Fcalendar%2Faction%2Fcompose&rru=addevent&startdt=2026-08-22T21%3A00%3A00&subject=Go%20Magic%20August%209x9%20

🧒 Starting Them Young: The Nihon Ki-in Launches "Igo Friends"! 🎌 The Nihon Ki-in has just announced a fantastic new initiative to bring the game of Go to the next generation! Meet "Igo Friends" — a new preschool promotion project designed to create an environment where young children can naturally discover and fall in love with Go. It brings regular Go classes into kindergartens and certified childcare centers, starting in Tokyo and the surrounding metropolitan area, with the aim of standardizing the teaching model and eventually expanding nationwide. The project is led by Nihon Kiin executive director Ohashi Takufumi. 💬 We are curious: How is youth Go growing in your country? Do you have programs that introduce Go to kids in schools or kindergartens? Let us know below! 👇 #gogame #weiqi #baduk #Japan #kids #learning