MASTER MIND STRATEGY
As the rules and regulation of the game suggests there is no specific way to playing this mind-boggling game. You can just make your own choice and play according to it. But the fact that any one of the 6 colors that could be placed in four places, you end with (6x6x6x6) = 1296 combinations to choose from as your decoding pattern. So if one goes by picking out random colors, he can just hope that he ends up winning
For this reason, many theories have come up which discuss the minimum number of steps required to decrypt the code. However, the names of Kenji Koyama and Tony W. Lai are revered in this respect, for they were the first to calculate that a minimum of around 5 steps is required to interpret the code.
The strategy that we would be discussing is the most efficient one at winning MASTERMIND. It is known as the FIVE-STEP algorithm, which states that out of all 1296 possible combinations, we should always make our first choice a combination of two colors in such a manner that one pair of color is followed by the other pair (As an example, envisage choosing a pair of Red pegs, followed by a Cyan pair thus making the codebreaker’s choice: RRCC).
Computer analysis have estimated that after making the first move as an amalgamation of two colors as stated above, we are left with only 256 feasible moves, thus reducing the choice from 1296 to 256. It has been further proved that in this move, never does the number of viable choices peak over 256. On the contrary, if we had made a move of RRCG (G stands for green), then a stage comes where we shall have to deal with 276 choices.
So, this is in reality the best method, dealing with the minimum number of possible key peg configurations
Recent studies are also going on for a SIX-STEP algorithm which is easier to implement in comparison to the FIVE-STEP.
