I to love laptops for playing, they are like a portable gaming console. Imagine a DS blown up with loads of keys! I started modding on a laptop but once I wanted to start making bigger mods and playing bigger mods i needed the extra power..
If you have the budget, due to many high end laptops nowadays not being customized after being bought you should just splurge on a single device that you know will last for years. An example (not for gaming) would be a macbook pro. I went with the highest end model a year ago almost because I will be using it for web/graphic design as well as modding on the windows side and playing the latest games. I also wanted something that I knew would be durable and have a high battery life etc.
Many factors play into what laptop to get but the main one is, budget. If you really want to splurge then do it but keep in mind it will be expensive and you will have to use it for years to come (most likely).
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Dedicated Graphics is a must for playing games
Games like Minecraft are very CPU/RAM intensive.
RTS games dont need a quad core CPU to run but if your going for the best quality and performance as well as the ability to play some newer games then eh hard to say
SSD vs HD. SSD - Super fast but not a lot of hard drive space, if you want to fit more games then get something that is either a hybrid or just go with a standard HD.
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Anyways, the choice is yours. Have fun