Checkers game & AI Opponent in react

Hey! Thanks for checking out my checkers game. I know that the title says 'React Checkers', but there isn't a ton of React in use here, it's only handling the display (that's its job, huh?).

Essentially React displays our board array, and most of the moving and detection are just accessing that array. The AI is built out using a limited version of the minimax algorithm , simply it means that the program forecasts futures, assumes you'll play as if you were doing the same, and picks the route that it thinks will result in the best for itself if you also play 'perfeclty', and I use that word loosely because this AI currently only looks 3 turns in to the future. It uses a point system to determine 'good' and 'bad' stuff that could happen, for example, if it can win in the next 3 turns, thats a 100 point outcome.

If it will lose in the next 3 turns, thats worth -100 points, losing a king or killing an enemy king are worth -25 or 25 points respectively, and killing/losing regular pieces are worth +-10 points. Lastly, classifies making a new king of it's own as worth 15 points, so slightly better than killing 1 opponent.

The bot looks through something like 1000-1500 possible futures before each move.

Live demo

See the Pen React Checkers & AI Opponent by Caleb OLeary (@caleboleary) on CodePen.