It's a rare occurrence when I actually laugh out loud at something while in public. In private, I'll crack up at anything, but almost never in public.  There's a mighty fine tradition of the affable space comedy in videogames, and its really a shame that most developers will choose the easy path of melodrama, rather than experiment with the endless joys of outer space chuckles and the occasional alien guffaw.  So I naturally gravitate - no pun intended - to those games that try to challenge the status quo, each time hoping to discover something new, or at the very least, shock me from the dramatic complacency of other games.  Few things in life can cause such an outburst, but Space Miner: Space Ore Bust for the iPhone/iPod Touch is one of them.

On its surface, Space Miner is essentially an updated take on the arcade-classic Asteroids, with several role-playing elements mixed in for good measure. You blow up asteroids to make money to help purchase bigger guns to blow up even more asteroids.  Sounds simple enough, and it generally is, although what makes the latest game from developer Venan Entertainment so compelling is how well they mix casual-style action against a hilarious interstellar space yarn, populated with tongue-in-cheek humor and bursting with personality that manages to suck you in like a black hole.

The story revolves around your character, who we'll call Average Joe, a recent space university graduate, and looking for work.  Joe makes his way across space to find Uncle Jeb, a walking hillbilly stereotype who just happens to run the Gritstone Mining Station, and is looking to repay a disastrous loan made by the ruthless Mega Space Corporation.  Like all ruthless corporations (are there any other kind?), Mega Corp wants its money, or else they'll repossess Gritstone and leave hapless Uncle Jeb out in the cold, dark recesses of space.  Now, with only the help of the station's helpful alien (let's call him Terry), its up to Joe to mine as much space ore as possible, repay the loan, and (just maybe) save the galaxy.

The bulk of gameplay consists of mining ore for profit by destroying those pesky asteroids, and collecting scrap metal in order to advance your space license and purchase upgrades. The controls are simple enough, with a virtual stick used to control your vessel on the left, and separate virtual buttons for fire (attack) and thrust (acceleration) on the right.  They are pretty responsive, and it was fun experimenting with the different speed + firing strategies during missions, adding a layer of skill to what might have been an otherwise straightforward shooter.

While the core of the game is spent collecting resources, there are several side-missions that range from the simple to the simply bizarre, from rescuing stranded space-tourists to disrupting the very fabric of time itself.  These are a great way to add some extra cash to your account, and help add variety to the standard mining campaign.

The game refuses to pull punches when it comes to laying on the funny.  With taglines like "We DelivORE" and a special "HardcORE" difficult setting, to the alien language that has over 10,000 vowels that is nearly impossible to decipher, its clear where the game's priorities are.  Its an experience that owes several nudge, nudge, wink, winks to Douglas Adams, Red Dwarf, and just about every other intergalactic space farce you can think of.

The cast is a walking group of hilarious stereotypes, as Uncle Jeb, with his broken hillbilly jargon, is apparently 400% illiterate, while Terry is the smart and unquestioningly loyal alien who handles all the boring and horrible things no one would suffer through in their entire life.  There's plenty more, too, from the obnoxious, egotistic space hero who's a legend in his own mind (Futurama, anyone?) to the actual dude running Mega Space itself; he's never wrong, and never lets you forget that you're about as useful as a used tissue to him.

It also doesn't hurt that the game looks absolutely gorgeous, with detailed 3D models and fancy scrolling effects that really do pop on the smaller screen.  The use of bright, vivid colors was also welcome, and the large amount of text was easy to read and understand.  The strange mix of hillbilly and banjo music may not be for everyone, but it does fit well with the rest of the game.

For those interested in keeping up with the world, the game also includes integration with the popular Plus+ social network, which means connecting will give dedicated players access to online leaderboards, achievements, and other features the network is known for.

Space Miner: Space Ore Bust is one of the best games I've ever played on the iPhone platform, and its amazing how much detail and personality Venan Entertainment was able to stuff in such a tiny package. Its clear from the first time you boot up how much care was given to make this a complete experience, with an amazing mix of casual-friendly arcade action guided by one of the most knee-slapping, comedic space sagas since the days of Space Quest and Roger Wilco.  It has everything that this generation of gamers crave, and what the industry desperately needs more of. An experience that outweighs its puny asking price, and definitely one worth picking up.  Just try not to laugh too loud in public!