Play Go against an AI that fits your level, then go back through the game to see where it turned. It all runs on your iPhone or iPad, with no account and no sign-in.
Most Go apps hand a beginner an opponent that is either far too strong or so weak the game means nothing. GoMate: Go AI, Review & Play has 16 opponent levels, from a beginner sparring partner up through amateur and professional ranks to the strongest AI settings, so you can start where you are and move up.
The beginner sparring level is the gentlest one. Its playing strength is the lowest in the app, but on each turn it picks the move that keeps the position closest to even. You get a real game with room to practice, rather than a rout or a walkover. You can also set handicap stones and komi before you start, and take White if you prefer.
A game starts as a clean board. If you turn on the coach, you see a win-rate bar, suggested points on the board, and short hints. When a suggested point matches a recognizable shape, it is labeled with the shape’s name; when it doesn’t, you only get a circle, with no invented label. Turn the coach off and all of it disappears. You can also undo your last move, look at the territory so far, pass, or end the game and see the score counted either by area or by territory.
If you leave in the middle of a game, it is kept, and you can pick it up from the start screen.
Save a finished game and open it later in review. Step forward and back one move at a time or drag along the slider, and watch a win-rate curve across the whole game. Good moves are marked in green and questionable ones in red, so you can find the turning points without replaying everything from the start. You can show territory for either Black’s or White’s point of view.
You can import an SGF file and have the AI analyze it, with a progress indicator while it works. If the file has problems, such as a move on an occupied point, the app lists them and lets you decide whether to import the rest. Saved games can be renamed or deleted from the list.
The AI engine runs on your device. There is no account, and your games and settings are kept on the device itself. Sound and vibration can each be switched off in Settings.
Fifteen of the sixteen opponent levels, handicap and komi, the coach, saved games, SGF import and analysis, and review are all free, with no ads. The beginner sparring level is the one paid item. You can unlock it with a one-time purchase or an auto-renewing yearly plan, and prices are shown in the app by the App Store. Games already played at that level stay available to review and finish even if you haven’t unlocked it.