Official Rules
Straight to 21
Draw a card, beat the 10-second clock, and stack points 1 through 5. First player or team to 21 takes it. Read up, then come ready to win.
The Format
Players & Contents
2 or more players — play as individuals or teams. Every box comes loaded with 200 Trivia Cards.
The Objective
Be the first player or team to reach 21 points by correctly answering trivia questions from randomly drawn cards worth 1–5 points.
Setup
Shuffle all the trivia cards into one deck and place it face down in the center. Pick a Scorekeeper, decide your turn order, and set a 10-second timer.
How to Play
On your turn, draw one card off the top of the deck — don't look at it. Hand it to the player on your left. They turn it over, announce the category and the point value, then read the question aloud. The 10-second timer starts immediately, and you have to answer before time runs out.
Scoring
Correct answer? You gain the full point value shown on the card. Wrong answer or time expired? No points awarded. Either way, cards are discarded after use.
Winning
The first player or team to reach 21 points wins. Straight to 21.
Play Across the Categories
The deck runs across these throwback categories — 90s and 2000s Black culture, start to finish:
Take the Game Home
The take-home Black In The Day Trivia card game runs on the exact same 200 cards and the exact same categories. Same culture, your living room, your rules.
See the Card Game →