The ancient Chinese board game considered the oldest continuously played game in the world is Go. Known in Chinese as weiqi, Go is an abstract strategy game for two players in which opponents place black and white stones on the intersections of a grid and compete to surround territory.
The game was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago. Its earliest surviving written reference is commonly associated with the late Spring and Autumn period, and the game later became an important part of elite education and culture in China. It spread to Korea, where it is called baduk, and to Japan, where it is known as igo.
Go is often mistaken for chess-like games such as xiangqi, or for other traditional games including liubo and mahjong. Its defining feature is that stones are placed on the board and can be captured by removing the opponent’s surrounded stones; they are not moved like chess pieces.
The standard board has 19×19 lines, though 9×9 and 13×13 boards are also common. The game has no random chance, yet its simple rules create an enormous range of strategic possibilities.