Re: computer-go: new strategy game with $10,000 prize

[Dave Dyer <ddyer@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

 I think you're mistaken on one point.  If Arimaa has 1000x the
branching factor of chess, then programs similar to deep blue
will be helpless.   Good chess programs search the full tree
to great depth, and do pruning by using strategies to make 
alpha-beta more effective, not by preemptively eliminating
lines of play.  Conversely, chess programs that are not based
on brute force search are not contenders.

 I agree that you can't make any prediction about how easy or hard it 
would be to write an effective program, or for a human to learn,
based solely on the size of the move tree.