How to play Crazy eights well once you know the rules: the decisions that matter, and the habits that win.
An eight can be played on anything and lets you name the suit, so it is the card that gets you out of trouble. Holding one until you are stuck is usually worth more than playing it early.
But an eight left in your hand when someone else goes out costs you 50 points. When another player is down to one or two cards, play your eight while you still can.
When you play an eight, name the suit you hold most of, so you can keep playing for several turns. Naming a suit you only have one card of gives you one turn and then leaves you drawing.
Better still, name a suit you know the next player is out of. If they drew rather than following a suit a moment ago, that suit is the one to call.
A seven of hearts on a seven of clubs changes the suit just as an eight does, and costs you nothing. Use matching ranks to move the game to your strong suit, and keep the eights for when there is no other way.
Watch the ranks too: when a player is struggling to follow a suit, they may still hold a card of the same rank to switch away.
Court cards count 10 each in a loser's hand, so play kings, queens and jacks when you can early in a hand, and keep low cards for the end. An ace costs you only 1 if you get caught with it.
If you cannot play, you draw until you can, and a long draw can fill your hand. Keeping cards from several suits makes that less likely.
When someone has one or two cards left, notice which suit they could not play last, and try to keep the discard pile in it. If they called a suit with an eight, they probably hold it, so change away from it if you can.
Counting the eights that have been played tells you how safe you are. Once all four are gone, nobody can escape a suit they do not hold.