Situational Awareness FAQ
Common questions about the game, how it plays and where to play it.
What is Situational Awareness?
A fast neon card game for 3 to 6 drivers. Everyone is on the same stretch of road. You cause accidents to take other drivers' hubcaps, dodge the ones aimed at you, and finish with more hubcaps than anyone else. A game runs about 15 to 20 minutes.
How many players do you need?
Three to six. You can fill empty seats with computer drivers at three difficulties, so two friends and four bots works, or one player against bots to learn.
Is it free?
Yes. It plays free in your browser on a phone or a laptop. No account, no download, no ads.
Do I need to sign up or install anything?
No. Open the site, pick a name, and either host a table or join with a four-letter code. It also installs as an app on phones if you want a home-screen icon.
How do I win?
When the draw pile runs out, the trip is over and the driver holding the most hubcaps wins. Ties are broken by who is holding more cards.
How long is a game?
About 15 to 20 minutes for a full table. Fewer players run a little longer per person; more players run faster.
What are the three lanes?
The road. Every card that gets played lands face-up on one of three lanes in the middle, so the table can see what has been thrown. There is no discard pile and nothing to choose: the game puts each card on the shortest lane for you.
Is every card one thing?
Yes. Each card is a single Hazard, Save, Insult, Violation, Road Condition, Aftermarket, Trap or Escort — read the name and the badge and you know what it does. A hand of five is five options.
What does a Pit Stop do?
Instead of attacking, you discard the cards you don't want, draw back up to five, and one fresh card from the pile turns onto the road. It burns a card of fuel from the pile, which is the game's clock.
What is kicking rocks?
If you lose your last hubcap you are kicking rocks. Your Hazards become plain rocks that any Save stops, and you climb back once you hold a hubcap again.
Can I stop an attack?
Yes. A Save of the matching colour stops a Hazard; an Aftermarket blocks a whole colour for the rest of the game; any Save stops a Moving Violation aimed at you. But watch for Traps: a face-down trap can be sprung on your Save to wreck it.
Can other players see my hand?
No. Hands are hidden — nobody sees another driver's cards until they're played. The lanes are face-up, and what you remember of them is the only read anyone gets. The one exception is Texting: it lets the driver who plays it peek at your hand until your next turn.
What are Traps?
Face-down cards you set on the field. When any driver plays a Save, another driver holding three or more cards may flip the top trap: match the Save's category and the Save is wrecked and the Hazard lands, free; miss and the trap fizzles and they discard three. It springs once, then it's gone. There is one per category — Black Ice, Falling Rock, Blind Spot and Flash Flood.
What is a Police Escort?
The one card you play out of turn. During another driver's turn it ends their turn as soon as the card in front of them resolves, There are two in the deck.
Can I play on my phone?
Yes. It is built for phones and laptops, portrait or landscape, and installs to your home screen as an app.
Is there a single-player mode?
You can play solo against computer drivers, and a computer takes over any seat whose player steps away, then hands it back when they return.
Is there a physical version?
A print edition is in the works. For now the game is digital and free on the web.
Who made it?
Situational Awareness is a Beckham Enterprises LLC game.