Crazy Eights
Match it. Or play an 8.
The card game almost everyone learns first: match the top card by rank or suit, play an 8 to change the suit, and be the first to empty your hand. Here is everything you need to know before you sit down.
- Free practice
- No sign-up
- Play in your browser
Join a Game Room
Crazy EightsGot a room code?
- Players
- 2 or more
- You need
- A standard deck
- Style
- Shedding
- Goal
- Empty your hand
What is Crazy Eights?
Match it, or make it crazy.
Crazy Eights is a shedding game: everyone tries to get rid of their cards first. On your turn you play a card that matches the top of the discard pile by rank or by suit. Can’t, or don’t want to? Draw a card instead.
The 8s are wild. Play one on anything and name the suit that has to come next. The first player to empty their hand scores the cards everyone else is still holding.
The practice table
Try itLearn it with the cards in your hand.
Play against one bot with our Classic rules. The cards that fit light up, and the coach tells you which to play, when to hold your 8s, and which suit to call.
- Quick game plays to 50. Full game goes to 100.
- Turn the coach off when you want to play it straight.
- No account, no host, nothing saved.
Scoring chart
| Card left in hand | Points |
|---|---|
| An 8 | 50 |
| King, Queen or Jack | 10 |
| 2 to 10 | Face value |
| Ace | 1 |
| Blocked: nobody can play or draw | Smaller hand scores the difference |
A little history
Everyone’s first card game.
Crazy Eights has been taught at kitchen tables for generations, and many famous card games, with their own special cards and colors, grew from it. Families still play it a dozen different ways.
We teach one Classic version, the basic rules from Pagat, and show it before every game.
Fun facts
- The 8s are wild: play one on anything and name the suit that has to come next.
- The first player to empty their hand scores every card the others are still holding.
- In our rules a drawn card waits for your next turn. Many families let you play it straight away.
Why people love it
Simple, then sneaky.
Anyone can play.
Match the number or the suit. Kids pick it up in one hand.
The 8 changes everything.
One card can take the game anywhere, and everyone watches what suit you call.
Read the table.
When the bot draws on hearts, it has no hearts. Keep them coming.
Big swings.
Get caught with an 8 and it costs 50. One hand can turn a game around.
How to play
Match. Draw. Go out.
Setup
- Players: two or more. Our practice table is you against one bot.
- Deck: one standard 52-card deck.
- Your hand: seven cards each with two players, five with more.
- The pile: the next card is turned up to start the discard pile. The rest is the stock.
Winning
The first to empty their hand scores the cards left in the other hand. The deal alternates, and the first to the target wins.
- 1
Match the top card
Play a card of the same rank or the same suit as the top of the discard pile.
- 2
Eights are wild
An 8 goes on anything. Name a suit; the next card must be that suit or another 8.
- 3
Or draw one
Instead of playing, draw one card from the stock. Your turn is over.
- 4
Empty stock
Shuffle the discards, all but the top card, into a new stock.
- 5
Go out
Play your last card to win the hand, and score what the other hand holds.
These are our Classic rules, and they'll be shown in every room before the game starts. Printable rules card →
Lessons
Learn it in a few minutes.
6 quick lessons, one idea each. Make the call, see why it works, and move on. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Rank or suit
The top card is the 9♥. Which of these can you play?
Top card
Your hand
Scoring
Get caught, pay up.
Whoever goes out scores every card left in the other hand.
| Card left in hand | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| An 8 | 50 | |
| King, Queen or Jack | 10 | |
| 2 to 10 | Face value | |
| Ace | 1 | |
| Blocked: nobody can play or draw | Smaller hand scores the difference |
Our Classic rules: one card per draw, and the drawn card waits for your next turn. Many families let you play it straight away, or draw until you can play.
Strategy
Play it smart. Then play it feral.
Tip 1
Shed high cards first.
Every card in your hand is points for the other side if they go out. Get rid of Kings and Queens while they fit.
Tip 2
Save your 8s.
An 8 fits anything, so keep it for when you are stuck. But don’t get caught with it at the end: it is worth 50.
Tip 3
Steer the suit.
If the bot just drew on spades, it has no spades. Turn the play back to spades when you can.
Tip 4
Name your strong suit.
After an 8, call the suit you hold most of, so you have a play next turn.
What would you do?
One decision. Every day.
A new Crazy Eights puzzle every day, the same for everyone. Solve it, then send it to the group chat and see who gets it right.
Want more? See today's puzzles for every game →
Your path to game night
Learn it here. Play it with friends.
Finish the lessons or win a practice game and you're ready to sit down at a real Crazy Eights table with your people.
The Feral Worlds community
Play-testing Crazy Eights? Tell us in Discord.
Found a bug, a rule that feels off, or a house rule your family swears by? Our Discord is where we collect play-test feedback, and where game nights are starting to happen.
Glossary
Talk like a regular.
- Discard pile
- The face-up pile in the middle. You match its top card.
- Stock
- The face-down pile you draw from.
- Match
- Same rank or same suit as the top card.
- Wild 8
- An 8 goes on anything. You name the suit that comes next.
- Name a suit
- Choose the suit the next player must follow after your 8.
- Go out
- Play your last card. You score the cards left in other hands.
- Blocked
- Nobody can play or draw. The smaller hand scores the difference.
The Feral twist
Still under the hat.
Every game can be played Classic. In Feral mode, the host writes the house rules: special cards, how many you draw, what an 8 does. We'll show you what Crazy Eights can do when it's ready.
In the Card Games pack
Crazy Eights is on the ballot.
Backers vote on which card games join the Card Games pack. Owning the pack means every one that joins is yours too.
$9.95, one time, to host every game in it. Playing is always free. Packs go on sale when the full game launches.
Crazy Eights is on the ballot
Save me a seat.
Hear when the Kickstarter opens so you can vote Crazy Eights into the Card Games pack, and when you can host it with friends.