Let me be perfectly honest with you—I’ve spent more hours than I care to admit digging into games that promise big rewards but deliver little. When I first heard about FACAI-Egypt Bonanza, my curiosity was piqued. But after spending considerable time exploring its mechanics, rewards, and overall design, I can’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu. There’s a game here for someone willing to lower their standards enough, but trust me when I say there are hundreds of better RPGs for you to spend your time on. You do not need to waste it searching for a few nuggets buried here.
I’ve been reviewing games for over a decade, and my relationship with long-running series runs deep. Take Madden, for example. I’ve been reviewing its annual installments nearly as long as I’ve been writing online, and I’ve been playing the series since the mid-’90s as a little boy. It taught me not just how to play football, but also how to play video games. It has been in my life for as long as I can remember and tied to my career as closely as any game. But lately I’ve wondered if it may be time for me to take a year off. That same feeling crept in with FACAI-Egypt Bonanza. On the surface, it looks promising—vibrant Egyptian-themed visuals, treasure hunts, and the allure of "massive wins." Dig a little deeper, though, and you’ll find a game that struggles to escape its own repetitive design.
Let’s talk about the positives first, because every game has them. FACAI-Egypt Bonanza does a few things right. The core treasure-hunting loop, when it works, feels rewarding. I’d estimate that around 15% of players might actually hit those so-called massive wins—though my own experience suggests that number is closer to 8%. The on-field action, so to speak, is polished. If you’re going to excel at one thing, it’s good to have that be the core gameplay, and in this regard, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza isn’t a complete failure. The problem, much like with Madden NFL 25—which, for the third consecutive year, by my count, has been noticeably improved whenever you’re on the field—is that the off-field experience drags everything down.
Describing the game’s problems off the field is proving to be a difficult task due to so many of them being repeat offenders year after year. FACAI-Egypt Bonanza suffers from the same issue. The user interface feels cluttered, progression systems are needlessly grindy, and there’s a lack of meaningful innovation in its RPG systems. I’ve seen these exact problems in at least five other mid-tier RPGs released in the last two years. It’s frustrating because you can tell there’s passion behind the project, but it’s buried under poor execution and a reluctance to break from tired formulas.
Now, I don’t want to sound overly harsh. If you’re someone who genuinely enjoys grinding for incremental rewards and doesn’t mind a bit of jank, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza might offer you 30 to 40 hours of entertainment. But if you’re like me—someone who values their time and expects a certain level of polish—you’re better off looking elsewhere. Games like "Eternal Oasis" or "Chronicles of the Sand" offer similar themes but with far more refined mechanics and, frankly, more heart.
In the end, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza feels like a missed opportunity. It’s not without its moments, but those moments are too few and far between. If you’re determined to unlock its so-called secrets, go in with tempered expectations. But if you ask me, your time—and let’s be real, your money—are better spent on experiences that respect both. After all, gaming should be about joy, not endurance.