Games are usually played to a total of 20 tossups read. CBCI or College Bowl format emphasizes comparitively short questions on academics, current events, pop culture, and general knowledge. The limits on participation are 6 years total in CBCI tournaments and only one grad student per team. Questions tend to be structured so that most of the players know the answers to tossups read in their entirety. It is played in 7 minute halves, to a total of 24 tossups read.
Game play is relatively quick as a result.
NAQT format balances the diversity of subjects found in CB packets with question difficulty often seen in the ACF format. Timeouts and player substitution during timeouts is allowed. In addition, there are power tossups, where 15 points may be earned during an early intrarupt. Game length can vary a little, but a standard length for NAQT is 9 minute halves and a total of 28 tossups. Questions come from one of three sources.