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Free Crazy Eights Card Game Online

Play Crazy Eights Online for Free

Game Features

Try to get rid of all your cards before your opponents do. Players receive points based on the cards remaining in their hand at the end of each round.

Click play to start a game. 

Guide To Crazy Eights

Crazy Eights is a game where you start with a handful of cards and the aim is to be the first to discard them all. It is similar to Switch and Mau Mau.

In this article, we'll look at: 

The History Of Crazy Eights

This game was played by children with the left-over cards from Euchre. Euchre originated in the early 1800s, whilst Crazy Eights first appeared as “Eights” in the 1930s. The name changed to “Crazy Eights” in the 1940's, a reference to a military discharge of mentally unstable soldiers. 

How To Play Crazy Eights

Dealing

The game uses a 52 card deck. 

Games start with each of the 4 players getting 8 cards and the remaining 20 cards dealt to the stock pile. The first card in the stock pile is then turned over to start the discard pile.

If you have four players, five cards are dealt to each player. Seven cards are dealt if you have two players. The remaining cards are placed face down in the center of the table. The top card is then turned face up. If the flipped card is an 8 the 8 is returned to the deck and a new card is flipped. 

Playing

Players play in a clockwise direction.

Each player must play a legal card on the waste pile or draw a card from the stock. Legal matches are cards which are in the same suit or have the same numerical value.

Eights are wild and players choose which suite they represent when they lay them.

Each player must play a single card onto the discard pile that matches either the rank or suit of the top card. The only exception to this rule is an eight as eights are wild and can be played on any other card. If you do play an eight, pick a suit.  The next card that is played must either match the picked suit or be another eight. If the player is unable to play, then they must draw cards from the draw deck until they can play, or until the stock pile is exhausted. 

If the player cannot play when the stock pile is exhausted, that player must pass the turn to the player on the left. Some variations have players limit the maximum number of cards drawn, typically five. A player may draw from the stock pile at any time, even when holding playable cards.

The game ends as soon as one player has emptied their hand. 

Scoring

Players receive points based on the cards remaining in opponents hands. Eights are worth 50 points, face cards are worth 10 points, numbered cards are worth their face value and aces are worth one. 

When one player has 100 points or more the game ends and the player with the fewest points wins. In this video game there are a maximum of 4 rounds and whoever has the highest score at that pint wins.

Whoever gets rid of all their cards first wins the hand. Whoever has the highest value of cards remaining in their hand scores zero points & the hand winner scores the numerical value of the worst loser's hand.

The remaining two players score the difference between what they are holding in their hand and the value of the worst hand.

Cards are scored as follows:

Crazy Eights Strategy

Try to keep the current suit matching the cards of which you have a high number. For example, if you have a lot of hearts, you want the suit to stay hearts.  

If matching the suit when you play your card, play your higher cards first. These cards are worth more at the end of the round, so you don't want to be left holding them. 

Watch out for players who play an eight then name a suit. They are typically signalling they have a lot of cards of tht suit. If you can, try and change the suit again to block them. 

Save your eights for late in the game but dump all of them before the end. If you don't, you will earn a lot of unwanted points. Eights are great blocking cards. If an opponent is down to one card, playing an eight can buy you time. 

Video Game Strategy

At the end of 4 hands the winner typically has between 90 and 120 points.

The key to doing well in this game is to hold a diverse range of cards until you have few cards left. Having 6 cards in the same suit will limit your play options. Having 3 fours will also make it harder to match other cards if you do not have any cards in the fourth suit.

You generally want to get rid of the suits and card values you have the most of first and keep your hand as diverse as possible until you have few cards remaining.

When you lay an 8 you usually want to choose a suit you have more of remaining in your hand.

If another player has only 1 card remaining in their hand and you have an 8 you may want to lay the 8 early even if you don't need to in order to avoid giving all other players that free 50 points.

FAQ

How many cards are used in Crazy Eights? 

Crazy Eights uses one deck of 52 cards. If you have more than five players, you may choose to use two decks to keep it interesting.

What cards are wild in Crazy Eights? 

As the name suggests, eights are wild. 

How many people can play Crazy Eights?

Crazy Eights is typically played with two to four people. If you have more than five players, consider using two decks. 

What are alternative versions of Crazy Eights?

There are many close versions to Crazy Eights. These include: 

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