I was surprised to see when I entered the championship a version of LOA that I had never played before. Checking earlier threads, I understand why this version became the default. And having played a few games now I'm starting to get used to it. For the more experienced players, how does Black Hole compare with the standard game? Is it significantly deeper?

It definately adds to the game, both because of black hole and bigger size. I think size is more significant but the black hole adds new strategy elements too.

I don't think you can start a game with focus on using black hole, but at certain stages of the game you're often asking yourself, do I play standard (connect yours or block opponents pieces) or reduce number of my pieces?

It gives more solutions and makes the game more enjoyable and at the same time I don't feel it makes the game much harder to analyze, so that's a great addition in my opinion.