How much would go change if diagonal stones were considered adjacent?

It would be just about impossible as every stone not on the edge would have eight liberties.

_________________
Still officially AGA 5d but I play so irregularly these days that I am probably only 3d or 4d over the board (but hopefully still 5d in terms of knowledge, theory and the ability to contribute).

I don't think this would be much of an issue - it would be just harder to kill stones so you capture less on average during the game.

Instead, the considerations here would be:
1. How would a KO look like? and
2. You would have to spend a few more moves to secure areas (so securing areas would get harder).
3. Same (#2) also goes for eyes of living groups - which would affect some/many joseki (obviously) and invasions (which would get harder, I think - but this might balance with securing areas being harder.)

But all in all, I still think we would recognize the game for what it is.

However, once somebody tries it, a whole bunch of other issues might pop up... I never did so I am not sure what else can happen. Play a game like that and find out.

3D Go would be much more tricky, I fear.

_________________
- Bantari
______________________________________________
WARNING: This post might contain Opinions!!

Is 'adjactent' an English word? Unfindable in any of my dictionaries.

_________________
Wait, please.

Didn't even notice that - I just read it as adjacent.

_________________
Still officially AGA 5d but I play so irregularly these days that I am probably only 3d or 4d over the board (but hopefully still 5d in terms of knowledge, theory and the ability to contribute).

Effectively no more ladders, and there is no longer such a thing as a cross cut... the concept of a hane is lost too, as it is now just another stretch (albeit a strange one).

To the best of my calculations, a ko no longer exists.

_________________
Help make L19 more organized. Make an index: https://lifein19x19.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5207

Capturing a single stone would be like this presumably.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$B No more ko
$$ +------------
$$ | . . . . . .
$$ | . X X 1 . .
$$ | . X O X . .
$$ | . X X X . .
$$ | . . . . . .
$$ | . . . . . .[/go]

_________________
Dave Sigaty
"Short-lived are both the praiser and the praised, and rememberer and the remembered..."
- Marcus Aurelius; Meditations, VIII 21

I think seki will happen a lot more often.

_________________
Help make L19 more organized. Make an index: https://lifein19x19.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5207

More problematically, no more false eyes. There goes 95% of the sub 15k tsumego.

Indeed, any stone causing a capture would need to be connected to at least one other stone of the same color...so ko goes out the window pretty quickly.

There should be more false eyes. The problems just change.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$W No more easy eyes
$$ +------------
$$ | . . . . . .
$$ | . X X X . .
$$ | . X O X . .
$$ | . X X 1 . .
$$ | . . . . . .
$$ | . . . . . .[/go]

EDIT: in the center of the board, an eye is now 16 times harder to make. On the side, it is 4 times harder. In the corner, twice.

_________________
Help make L19 more organized. Make an index: https://lifein19x19.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5207

That's not a false eye. Well, not under the usual definitions I've seen for them.

I mean your diagram is analagous to this no?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$B
$$ . . . . |
$$ . . . . |
$$ . . O . |
$$ . X O X |
$$ . X X X |
$$ , . . . |
$$ . . . . |
$$ . . . . |
$$ . . . . |
$$ --------+[/go]

In fact, I would assume that in a game between competent players, the majority of the board would end up as a seki. Possibly the entire board.

_________________
Occupy Babel!

I think that is probably true. Invasions are easy, so eyes are nearly impossible.
I tried a short game, playing both sides. The first player cannot make an eye with a 3-3 play because invasions are so easily connected out.

Actually, I would rephrase that as "... a game between competent aggressive players, the majority of the board would end up as a seki." It is possible that both sides would concentrate on their respective eyes first, then try to connect everything on the board to them.

_________________
Help make L19 more organized. Make an index: https://lifein19x19.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5207

It's pretty much impossible to cut anything. Can Black separate White here?

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$c Black to play.
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . X X X . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . O . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

It is very hard to make eyes. If you want an eye in the corner the 2-2 point is your only move, but trying to protect the 1-1 point can kill you.

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$c Black tries too hard to make an eye
$$ ---------------
$$ . . . 9 7 3 . |
$$ . . 0 8 2 1 5 |
$$ . . . . 6 4 . |
$$ . . . , . . . |[/go]

Click Here To Show Diagram Code

[go]$$c Black to play.
$$ ---------------------------------------
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . 1 . O . 2 . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . X X X . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . O . 3 4 . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . 9 7 . 6 . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . 0 . 8 . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . , . . . . . , . . . . . , . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
$$ ---------------------------------------[/go]

_________________
Occupy Babel!

This might be a decent candidate for "crazy go" night at a Go Congress. Though I wouldn't be surprised if it has been done before.

_________________
Help make L19 more organized. Make an index: https://lifein19x19.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5207