How a round works
Every round runs lineup, live and result on a fixed clock. When picks open and lock, how long matches last, and when a round is void and refunded.
Each arena keeps its own clock. A full round takes about 35 to 60 seconds, and the next lineup starts when the result is done, whether anyone is watching or not.
The round cycle
| Phase | What the pill says | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Lineup | Bets open, counting down | 8 seconds |
| Live | Live, with the match clock | Until someone wins, with a cap of 35 to 45 seconds by game |
| Result | Final | 6 seconds |
Most matches finish before the cap. A Neon Knockout fight usually takes about 25 seconds, Rush Hour and Broadside about 32, Skyball about 36, Clash about 39, and Turf War 41 to 45. The games has each one's rules and cap.
Picks for a round open the moment the round before it goes live, and stay open until just before GO. So every card always has a round you can pick. While a match is being played, the strip at the bottom shows the next one as Up next.
One match that everyone watches
Each arena runs one live simulation on the server and streams it to every viewer. You and everyone else watching see the same match, and every Drop lands for all of you at once.
Every side starts even. Starting spots and roles come from a shuffle based on the round's seed, so each competitor has the same chance before GO. The seed is locked in a hash before picks open and revealed when the round ends. Provably fair shows how to check it.
When picks lock
Picks lock 0.6 seconds before GO. The app stops taking them and the pill switches to Locked. If a pick you sent just before that reaches the server after GO, you see "Bets closed for that round" and nothing is taken.
If you had a side selected but hadn't tapped Bet in time, the pick isn't lost in silence. The strip says something like "Too late · Boo for the next race" and opens the next round's sides with the same character selected, if they're in that lineup. If they aren't, it opens with nothing selected. Nothing is taken from your balance until you tap Bet.
Void rounds and refunds
A void round has no winner. Every pick and every Drop in it is refunded in full. A round is void when:
- the match ends in an exact tie (Turf War never does: a level map is settled on tags, then a seeded coin flip)
- the game hits an error, stalls, or reports a winner that can't be right
- the server can't lock the round in its ledger within 10 seconds, so the match plays on with no picks riding on it
- a game update changes the rules while a round is locked or live (rounds not locked yet get a new seed under the new rules, and their picks stand)
- a round is stuck, still open or locked an hour after its latest possible finish
The result then reads "Round void, stakes refunded", and My bets shows the pick as Refunded.
The result and what comes next
The result names the winner and, in a close one, how it was decided, such as In sudden death for a Clash or Neon Knockout fight won after the sudden-death call. If your pick won, you see what you won on top of your stake, what came back to your balance, and Share clip. If it lost, you get one plain line, such as "−100 · Toxic lost".
On a phone, the feed then moves on by itself: after 4.6 seconds, or 5.5 seconds after a win. It goes to a card whose next round starts in 7 to 30 seconds, or to the live match with the most left to play. A Next match bar fills while you wait. Tap Stay to keep watching this arena. Picking its next round keeps you there too.
On a computer, the result stays on stage and nothing moves on by itself. The bet slip points to the next arena taking picks instead. See Basement on a computer.