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arXiv:2310.19387cs.AI

Othello is Solved

Hiroki Takizawa

Abstract

The game of Othello is one of the world's most complex and popular games that has yet to be computationally solved. Othello has roughly ten octodecillion (10 to the 58th power) possible game records and ten octillion (10 to the 28th power) possible game positions. The challenge of solving Othello, determining the outcome of a game with no mistake made by either player, has long been a grand challenge in computer science. This paper announces a significant milestone: Othello is now solved. It is computationally proved that perfect play by both players lead to a draw. Strong Othello software has long been built using heuristically designed search techniques. Solving a game provides a solution that enables the software to play the game perfectly.

arXiv comments
Typos in Figure 4 corrected; results, data, and conclusions unchanged and unaffected
Journal reference
DOI
Subjects
cs.AIArtificial Intelligence

On Hacker News

Linked by 2 identifiable commenters in 2 comments across 2 threads, from Nov 2023 to Nov 2025. Found in 1 HN submission from Nov 2023 to Nov 2023. Open submission discussions.

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Discussed in comments2 threads

  1. World Othello Championships 2025 1 comment

    • Thanks for the live link, which really should have been on that website! Btw, currently in round 3, I only see table 2 being broadcast. It's interesting to see the world championship continue after the game was solved in 2023 [1]. [1] https://arxiv.org/pdf/2310.19387

      trompView on HNParent context

  2. Othello Is Solved? 1 comment

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