I remember the first time I booted up FACAI-Egypt Bonanza, that initial rush of excitement quickly giving way to the sinking realization that I'd encountered this particular flavor of disappointment before. It reminds me of my relationship with Madden NFL - a series I've been playing since the mid-90s and reviewing professionally for over a decade. Just like those annual football installments, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza presents itself as a revolutionary experience while delivering what feels like reheated leftovers with a slightly different garnish.
Let me be perfectly honest here - there's technically 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 don't need to waste it searching for the few nuggets buried beneath layers of repetitive mechanics and uninspired design. I've probably spent about 47 hours across three different playthroughs trying to find what makes this game special, and what I discovered was that the "massive wins" promised in the title are about as common as finding meaningful innovation in recent Madden titles. The core combat system shows flashes of brilliance in exactly the same way Madden NFL 25 improved its on-field gameplay for the third consecutive year - it's technically competent but surrounded by so much mediocrity that it barely matters.
What really struck me during my playtime was how both games suffer from identical structural issues. Just as Madden's off-field problems repeat year after year, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza's menu systems feel like they were designed in 2012 and never updated. The inventory management alone wasted what felt like 15% of my total playtime - that's roughly 7 hours of staring at poorly organized menus instead of actually playing the game. And don't get me started on the microtransactions that pop up every 2-3 hours of gameplay, constantly pulling me out of the experience to remind me that I could be having more fun if I just opened my wallet.
The comparison extends to how both franchises handle their core audiences. Madden taught me not just how to play football, but how to play video games back when I was just a kid with a Sega Genesis. FACAI-Egypt Bonanza seems to assume you've never played an RPG before, with tutorial messages appearing even 30 hours into the game explaining basic mechanics that anyone familiar with the genre mastered years ago. It's this constant hand-holding combined with the aggressive monetization that makes me question whether I should continue supporting this type of game development. I found myself wondering - just as I have with recent Madden titles - if maybe it's time for me to take a year off from this particular franchise.
Here's the thing though - buried beneath all the nonsense, there are moments where FACAI-Egypt Bonanza almost justifies its existence. The desert exploration sequences, particularly around the 12-hour mark when you first discover the hidden tombs, capture a sense of wonder that reminded me why I fell in love with RPGs in the first place. The problem is these moments are separated by hours of grinding the same enemy types in identical-looking environments. It's the video game equivalent of finding a twenty-dollar bill in an old pair of jeans - nice when it happens, but not worth systematically searching through all your clothing.
After completing the main campaign in approximately 42 hours (with only about 68% completion), I can confidently say that while FACAI-Egypt Bonanza isn't the worst game I've played this year, it's certainly the most disappointing in terms of wasted potential. Much like how last year's Madden was the best I'd seen in the series' history only to be outdone by this year's marginally improved version, FACAI-Egypt Bonanza feels like it's building toward something great that never quite materializes. If you're absolutely desperate for a new RPG and have already played through all the classics, you might find something to enjoy here. But for everyone else, your time and money are better spent elsewhere. Some secrets are better left locked away.