CONSERVATIVE is like the Republican agenda as well as the religious right LIBERAL leans towards the Democratic agenda, and is somewhat socialistic.STRAIGHT leans towards the status quo, what the public views as normal WEIRD is unorthodox, deviating from the normal, what the public would view as unconventional and irregular.These bonuses are cumulative for any and all alignments for both Groups. Conversely, Groups incur penalties when attempting to control Groups with opposite alignments or when attempting to destroy groups with the same alignment. Groups gain bonuses when attempting to control other Groups with the same alignment or when attempting to destroy groups with an opposite alignment. There are 10 official Alignments in INWO in each of the Group cards (Illuminati, Organization, Personality). The INWO Book, by Steve Jackson, is the official guidebook to the game. Packs of blank cards are also sold for those who wish to create their own cards, an activity that has proven so popular that online collections of homebrew INWO cards now list thousands of cards. All cards in SubGenius have the same rarity.

There are common, uncommon, and super-rare cards in the main set and in Assassins Assassins also includes 10 'ultra-rare' cards. SubGenius can also be played as a stand-alone game. One 125-card expansion of sealed packs has been released, called Assassins, as well as a complete-in-one-box 100-card expansion called INWO SubGenius.

There was also a boxed set called variously The Factory Set and One With Everything which contained one of each card from the main set of the limited edition, multiples of the Illuminati cards, and a few cards previously only available in magazines. INWO was released as a 412-card main set in double starter decks (suitable for two players) and sealed packs, in both limited and unlimited editions. However, intrigue, negotiation, deal-making, and deviousness are also important elements. As with most CCGs, deck building, aggressive play, and sheer luck are keys to winning. INWO is often said to be more difficult to learn than most CCGs, but it is infused with much more humor, similar to other Steve Jackson games. You seek to control a predetermined number of Groups (such as the Boy Sprouts (a spoof of the Boy Scouts), the Men in Black, the CIA, etc.) and/or complete a Plot to achieve your goal before your opponent(s). The premise is that you play one of the Illuminati groups (the Adepts of Hermes, the Bavarian Illuminati, the Bermuda Triangle, the Discordian Society, the Gnomes of Zürich, The Network, the Servants of Cthulhu, Shangri-La, and the UFOs) bent on world domination. The various cards are printed with two differently colored backs and are collectively referred to as simply 'Groups' and 'Plots'.

Cards come in several types, including Illuminati, Plots, Groups, Places, Personalities, Resources, and New World Order cards.

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