Hey, did you know that Christmas is just a little over week away? I bet you didn’t, since retailers are usually pretty low-key about this sort of thing. Hell, I thought Christmas might have been canceled due to how subdued TV and print ads have been.

For those that haven’t forgotten, you’re either hoping for some games to spend the rest of your holiday break with, or fretting over what the hell to get your friend that seemingly has everything. In either case, there are plenty of recent games that can be had for cheap and are enjoyable as well.

But let’s suppose that you or your friend are connoisseurs of fine virtual collectibles, specifically those made of pretend precious metals. As it turns out, there are a number of fine wares with which to not only spend quality time with, but satisfy even the biggest trophy whor- erm, aficionado.

Thanks in advance to PS3Trophies.org for being such an awesome resource for guides.

Prince of Persia … any of it

Let’s start with some of the easiest platinum trophies you’ll find anywhere, movie-licensed games notwithstanding. Take your pick of any Prince of Persia disc release; PoP 2008 or The Forgotten Sands are not only fun as hell to play, but getting all of the trophies in either game requires minimal effort on the player’s part. 2008 has 1,001 light seeds to collect, but with a guide handy you’ll be able to burn through them all in a single weekend. As for TFS, you can get the platinum trophy in a single playthrough, something that takes no more than 8 hours to do.

2008 can be had for $21 and TFS for $20 from Amazon, both in plenty of time for Christmas.

But wait, there’s more! Recently, the classic Sands of Time was made available on the US PSN, with Warrior Within hitting soon. However, you don’t have to settle for $15 per game — instead, import a Blu-Ray featuring all three games from the original Sands of Time Trilogy. 365games.co.uk has the collection for about $40 US, including free shipping. Considering this gives you the opportunity to nab 3 different platinum trophies, this should be at the top of any trophy whore’s list. Or for those with generally good taste in games, for that matter.

Check it out here, but be quick if you want it in time for Christmas — it has to make its way across the pond, after all.

Trophy guides: Sands of Time / Warrior Within / The Two Thrones / Forgotten Sands / 2008

Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection/Mega Drive Ultimate Collection

While we’re on the subject of easy-ass platinums, let’s look at what’s probably the best collection of retro games money can buy. Well, apart from the 1000-in-1 NES emulators you can buy at the mall for $8.

There are many reasons why I love this collection, but prime among them is the fact that you’re getting modern rewards for the games of yesteryear. Trophies to play Sonic Spinball and Streets of Rage? My 7-year-old mind would have been blown in 1994. Beyond that, you’re getting 45 games for less than $0.50 each depending on where you grab this. I mean, Phantasy Star II was $100 when it first came out — insanity!

Better still is that both versions of the game offer separate but identical trophy sets. Except for having to beat Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, every single trophy is a snap to get — all of the old codes and cheats still work, and they won’t invalidate your trophy progress. You could theoretically knock out both platinum trophies in a single day, if you get your hands on both games at the same time. Unfortunately, the Mega Drive Ultimate Collection seems to be out of print, so it’s much harder to come by on this side of the Atlantic. Depending on your trophy addiction, it may or may not be worth the trouble of tracking it down.

Get the Genesis set from Amazon for cheap here.

Trophy Guides: Genesis / Mega Drive

The Sly Collection

Let’s go full steam ahead with the uber-awesome collection train, this time focusing on Sony’s latest offering. The Sly Collection takes its cues from last year’s successful God of War Collection (more on that later) by combining all of the PS2 classics onto a single BD-ROM, gussying up the visuals, and adding, you guessed it, trophy support. And since there are three separate games on the disc, like the previously mentioned PoP Collection, you get the chance at three different platinum trophies for a paltry $40.

There are a total of 110 trophies to collect here, and word is that they’re none too difficult to obtain. I say that because, well … I haven’t played the games before, ever. Of course, that lands me square in a key demographic that Sony’s aiming for — someone who overlooked the trilogy the first go ’round. Suffice it to say, I’m looking forward to playing through them and whorin’ some trophies in about a week’s time.

Amazon’s got the goods right here.

Trophy Guides: Sly 1: Thievius Raccoonus / Sly 2: Band of Thieves / Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves / Mini Games

God of War Collection

OK, this is it for collections, I promise. Can you blame me, though? On a single disc you’re getting multiple games with the potential of multiple platinums.

In this case, you get the two PS2 action classics that took Devil May Cry’s formula and injected a large dose of HGH into it, and in this HD collection they look even better than you remember. Of course, that doesn’t mean much in the spirit of this article, so know that most of the trophies are story-related, with a few sprinkled in that ask you to collect things, speed run through an entire game or tricky section, and beating the Challenge Modes.