Crazy Eights Strategy: How to Win

Do not get stuck. When nothing in your hand fits, the deck deals to you until a card does, and there is no limit. One stuck turn can put several cards back in your hand.

You play one card a turn, and you cannot draw by choice. So the whole game is choosing which card to let go of.

Judge every play by what it leaves behind. The best card to play is the one that keeps the rest of your hand able to answer the next top card.

An eight fits on anything. While you hold one, you cannot be dealt to. That makes it the most useful card in your hand.

There are no points in this game, so an eight left in your hand at the end costs no more than any other card. Nothing punishes you for holding one.

If a plain card fits, play the plain card. Spend an eight when it is your one card that fits, or when you need to change the suit to stop someone going out.

Try to finish on an eight. An eight always fits, so if it is your last card you go out on your next turn, as long as nobody gets there first. With two cards left and one of them an eight, play the other card first if it fits.

Name the suit you hold the most of. Then you have a card to play when the turn comes back, and likely the time after that too.

Count your hand without the eight you just played. The suit printed on the eight does not matter.

The exception is when the next player is down to their last card or two. Then name a suit you have seen them stuck on, even if it is not your best suit.

A rank match changes the suit without spending an eight. If the top card is the six of clubs and you play the six of hearts, the next player has to follow hearts.

Before you play, ask which suit you are leaving on top and whether you hold more of it. Leave a suit you can follow.

If your longest suit is already on top, stay in it. If it is not, and a rank match would take the game there, take it.

• Each seat shows one face-down card for every card in that hand. Check them before every play.
• When the banner says a player is being dealt to, they had no card of the suit in play, no card of that rank and no eight. Remember that suit.
• The dealing stops at the first card that fits. So a player who was dealt to on hearts has no hearts left once they have played, however many cards they picked up.
• When a person plays an eight, the suit they name is usually their longest. When a bot plays an eight, it always is.
• The number on the deck shows how many cards are left in it.

Turns always go round the same way, and there are no skips or reverses. Your card is the one the next player has to answer, so you have the most say over the seat right after you.

When that player is down to one card, try to leave a suit they were dealt to on. A rank match is the cheap way to get there. An eight is the sure way, and this is a good reason to spend one.

If you have not seen them stuck, any change is a guess. Keep your own hand healthy instead.

A player further round the table is harder to stop, because the players in between will change the top card before it reaches them.

With two players you each start with 7 cards, and every card you play is answered by the same opponent.

If you hold several cards of a suit your opponent is out of, keep playing it. Each time, they are dealt cards until one fits.

It works both ways. If you are the one who keeps getting stuck on a suit, use a rank match or an eight to leave it as soon as you can.

You have 20 seconds for each move. That is enough time to count your suits and look at the other hands. The countdown shows in the banner for the last 6 seconds.

Do not let it run out. A card that fits is then played for you at random. It will not spend an eight while a plain card fits, but it will not think about which plain card is best.

If the clock runs out while you are naming a suit, your most-held suit is named for you. That is often right, but it takes no account of who is about to go out.

• Playing an eight when a plain card fits.
• Naming a suit you hold one card of.
• Leaving a suit on top that you cannot follow.
• Treating high cards as dangerous. There are no points, so a king costs no more than a two.
• Not looking at how many cards the next player holds.
• Forgetting which suit a player was dealt to on.
• Letting the clock run out and pick a card for you.

Bots do not plan. A bot plays a card that fits, picked at random from its hand, and keeps its eights until nothing else fits.

So an eight from a bot tells you two things. It had no card of the suit in play and no card of that rank. And the suit it names is the one it holds the most of.

Use both. Move the game off the suit the bot named when a rank match lets you, and come back to the suit it was stuck on.

Bots do not look at your hand size and do not change the suit to stop you. When you are down to your last cards, a bot will not try to block you.

Because bots hold on to their eights, a bot may still have one late in the game. Do not count on a bot being stuck.

A bot waits about a second before each move, so you can see what it plays and when it is dealt to.

Crazy Eights is easy to teach. The cards that fit light up in your hand, so young players can see what they are allowed to play. Nobody has to remember to draw, because the deck deals on its own when a player is stuck.

With three or more players everyone starts with 5 cards. In a big group the top card changes many times before your turn comes back, so planning ahead matters less. Lean on the simple habits: keep your eights and name your longest suit.

At a party, put the table on a TV with joinme.games/watch. The room sees the pile, the named suit and how many cards everyone holds. No hand is shown on the big screen.

• Play a plain card before an eight.
• Try to make an eight your last card.
• Name the suit you hold the most of.
• Leave a suit on top that you can follow.
• Use rank matches to move the game to your long suit.
• Remember which suit each player was dealt to on.
• Watch the hand of the player right after you.
• Do not let the clock choose for you.

How do you win at Crazy Eights?

Stay able to play. Keep your eights for when nothing else fits, name the suit you hold the most of, and leave suits on top that you can follow. Being dealt to is what loses games, because there is no limit on how many cards you pick up.

When should you play an eight in Crazy Eights?

When it is your one card that fits, when it is your last card, or when you need to change the suit to stop a player who is about to go out. If a plain card fits, play that and keep the eight.

What suit should you pick after playing an eight?

The suit you hold the most of, counted without the eight. Pick a different suit only when the next player is nearly out and you have seen them get stuck on one. Then name that suit.

Should you get rid of high cards first in Crazy Eights?

No. This game is one hand with no points, so every card counts the same. Choose the card to play by the suit it leaves on top, not by its rank.

How do you beat the bots in Crazy Eights?

Bots play a random card that fits and keep eights until nothing else fits. When a bot plays an eight, it was out of the suit in play, and the suit it names is its longest. Steer away from the named suit and back to the one it lacked.

Is Crazy Eights good for kids?

Yes. The cards that fit light up, the deck deals on its own when a player is stuck, and there is nothing to read. With three or more players everyone starts with 5 cards.