At first I was a bit lost, the tutorial went by so fast. BUT because it uses go, I was able to just look up the rules and understand more of the game and continue. It was great in the end and as my first exposure to playing go, a funny way to experience it.
As for the theme... I did not "feel" it. As in, while the countdown was there, I felt more threatened by the stones than the number in the corner. But even with that in mind, it was a polished, brain scratchy and fun!