Older laptops will not run the latest games. If you want to run the standard games that come with the Windows OS (FreeCell, Minesweeper, Hearts or Solitaire), no problem. If you want to run the latest PC games you need to check the minimum systems requirements found on the box or on the game manufacturer's website.

Gaming is usually more Graphics Processor Unit (GPU) than Central Processor Unit (CPU) bound. The CPU is less important than the GPU. These graphic chips and cards for desktops are manufactured by companies like Nvidia and ATI. These type chips can sometimes be found in desktop replacement laptops.

An example of this type computer is the $4000+ Dell Inspiron XPS with a 128MB ATI Radeon 9700 graphics chip that started shipping in June 2004. Another less expensive choice would be a $2000 Alienware mobile desktop designed for gaming.

If you main use for the computer is to play high-end games you should seriously consider a desktop computer. You can purchase a big monitor, add high performance graphics boards, you will find the keyboards are much easier to use on a desktop computer than the fixed ones on laptops and they are typically a lot less expensive than an equivalently powerful laptop.