Crazy Eights

Setup

• Two to six players. The deck holds four colours (blue, red, yellow, green) with 1–9, draw two, draw three, reverse and skip — two of each — plus four colour-change cards: 108 in all.
• Shuffle and deal seven cards to each player. The rest becomes the draw pile.
• Turn over the top number card onto the table. Play starts from there.

How to play

• On your turn, play one card of the same colour or the same number as the card on top.
• Cards of the same number may be played together, as many as you hold. The last one you lay down goes on top.
• Play a colour change regardless of colour or number and choose the next colour. While Draw 2 or Draw 3 is in effect, only the same draw rank can be played.
• Draw two and draw three make the next player take that many and lose their turn — unless they play the same card, which adds to the pile and passes it on.
• Reverse turns the direction of play around (an even number of them played together cancels out).
• Play a Skip to skip the next player and advance to the following seat. Play two to repeat this from that seat. With two players, you skip your opponent twice and take another turn.
• If you cannot or do not want to play, draw one card and pass the turn.
• Go over fifteen cards in hand and you are out with too many.
• When the draw pile runs out, the cards already played — all but the top group — are shuffled back into it.

Winning

• Before playing cards that leave you with one card, call "Page One!". If somebody calls you out first, you draw five.
• The order in which players empty their hands sets the places: first, second and so on.
• A player out with too many cards takes the lowest place still open at that moment.
• When only one player is left, they take the next place and the game ends.

House rules