Speed is a fast-paced card game that tests your reflexes and quick thinking. To play, you’ll need a standard 52-card deck and at least two players. Follow these 12 steps to learn how to play Speed.

1. Shuffle the deck: Thoroughly shuffle the 52-card deck to ensure random distribution of cards.

2. Deal the cards: Each player receives 20 cards in a facedown stack, known as the “deck,” and 5 separate face-down cards, called their “hand.”

3. Set up the playing field: Two piles of five cards each are placed face down in the center of the playing area, creating the “side stacks.” Between those side stacks, place two single face-down cards – these will be the “center stacks.”

4. Begin the game: Simultaneously, both players turn over their center stack cards to reveal them face-up.

5. Play your hand: The goal of Speed is to get rid of all your cards as quickly as possible by placing them on either center stack in ascending or descending order, regardless of suits (e.g., if one center stack has a 6 on top, you can play either a 5 or a 7).

6. Draw from your deck: Whenever you play a card from your hand onto a center stack, immediately draw another card from your personal deck to replace it. You should always have five cards in your hand.

7. Move quickly! There are no turns in Speed – both players play simultaneously and as quickly as they can.

8. Utilize the side stacks: If neither player can play any cards from their hand, they both simultaneously flip over one card from their personal side stacks onto their respective center stacks. This often creates new opportunities for playable moves.

9. Call out “Speed” when necessary: If neither player can make any moves after flipping a card from a side stack, each player calls out “Speed!” The first player to say it will flip one new card from their side stack, which can be used by either player.

10. Empty your hand: Continue playing cards from your hand and drawing cards from your deck until you have no more cards in your personal deck and an empty hand.

11. Slap the center stacks: Once you’ve gone through all of your cards, quickly slap both center stacks. The first player to slap them wins the round.

12. Repeat for multiple rounds: You can play as many rounds of Speed as you want – the first player to win a predetermined number of rounds (e.g., 5 or 10) is declared the overall winner.

Now that you know how to play Speed, gather some friends, grab a deck of cards, and put your reflexes to the test!