Lost Star is a cooperative/competitive hybrid card game about the internal power struggle of a star ship crew adrift in the galaxy. The Lost Star's captain is dead, and her crew is lightyears from home. One player in command and up to four other players acting as the crew must cooperate to return home safely. However, the Commander is untrustworthy as he will take credit for the success of the mission. Play proceeds with drawn encounters of various difficulty. Four decks of cards feed the players' hands based on the their role. The commander takes cards from each of these decks, and plays orders based on his exclusive knowledge of the encounter's potential effects. In the following phase players are encouraged to dissent and replace their given orders for ones they prefer. Orders affect how the encounter resolves, and successful orders increase the players trust. With which they can use on challenging encounters, boost their fellow crewmembers, or mutiny and take command. If the crew makes it through all of the encounters the Commander takes credit for the success of the mission and is declared the winner. There is only one winner, but no one wins unless the Lost Star makes it home.