My job requires that I travel and gaming on a laptop is something that I find as being convenient. However I usually stick to older rpgs, tbs games when I am doing so since it feels more appropriate.

I am always on the road and I play on a laptop because I don't have anything else. That's all I've done for the last 5 or so years. It's gotten to a point that, even on a day such as today when I am staying at my old room at my parent's, and as such I have my old desktop right in front of it, I still game on my laptop.

And gaming in bed isn't so bad, IMO. My back might disagree though.

I play almost exclusively on laptops nowadays, on a 14" screen mostly, and sometimes on a bigger 17.3" laptop.

I'm actually surprised that the smaller screen doesn't really bother me, even with games where the graphics matter (like new-ish FPS games and such, Spec Ops: The Line, Mirror's Edge, Race Driver GRID etc.). Maybe I have just gotten used to it and can fully immerse myself through a smaller screen too, but then I do occasionally connect the laptop also to my 47" HDTV and play on it, yet I don't get any "Wow! This is so much better than on a small screen!"-sensation for some reason. But still, I guess a bigger screen is always preferable for the full experience, unless it is something you want to do in secrecy.

I prefer doing work on a big desktop monitor, much more pleasing to the eyes to read text from a bigger screen. That's why at work my laptop is connected to a big monitor 95% of the time (and the laptop screen acts as a secondary monitor, desktop extended on both screens).

When you said you think that might be the reason why you don't enjoy some games as much as others seem to, have you tested that theory by playing the same games on a bigger monitor, or even your TV? Do you like the games more then? I think you might just be getting bored of games in general, nothing necessarily to do with the screen size.

I'm playing on 17.3" laptop with Full HD resolution and I can't imagine getting back to PC times. Separate desk for a PC? Waste of space! :)

Yeah, most of the lower end "chiclet keyboard" are pretty bad, but I've found that they bother me mainly when writing (typing), not when gaming. I do WASD + mouse just as well on a poor laptop chiclet-keyboard, than on a proper desktop keyboard. At least if the laptop keyboard is full size, with also a keypad. On smaller 14" laptops and such that is not the case, so the keyboard can feel cramped.

Fortunately you can connect any USB or wireless keyboard and mouse to a laptop too, if need arises.

Funny thing though, nowadays I find the old type of desktop keyboards a bit clunky and NOISY. Constant noisy "CLACKETY-CLACKETY-CLACK!" when I type this message, for example. A bit like if my mouse gave a constant WEEEE! sound when I move it around, and a yelp when I click a mouse button. :). Actually, I have USB mouse I don't like to use because its scroll button is very noisy, giving a very audible rattle when you scroll anything. My current one's scroll button is silent though.

At the moment my preferred keyboard for pretty much any use is this one (Logitech K360 wireless keyboard):

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2408025,00.asp

It is also a chiclet-type keyboard, but pretty damn good one IMHO. It is nice to even write with it (some others in the comments section seem to disagree, oh well...). The only complain I have for it is that it doesn't have backlight so that I could see the keys also in the dark, but then it is wireless, so a backlight would probably eat its batteries quite fast... I've seen some other wireless keyboards with backlights, though.

Really? How can a desktop PC take less place than a laptop? :-S

few things:
cables: in desktop computer everything is tucked away cleanly behind the desk. in laptop you have: mouse cable, headphone cable, power cord, second monitor cable laying on top of the desk. that takes space.
the body of laptop. whole computer sits on the desk while with desktop only keyboard sits on the desk where you work. monitor sits at the very end of the desk which you don't really use that much. and you can move keyboard out of way to make room for a book or tablet or dinner.
the tower is not an issue because it sits on the ground somewhere where its out of the way.



i am speaking out of experience. both my father and I moved away from desktops to laptop for the very first time and we both have issues with space.
my current desk is fairly decent size but i am still having issues when it comes to managing my space. never had that problem with desktop as again: only keyboard is in the way (and if you have one of those computer desks then even it is not a problem anymore)

basically:

with desktop you have whole desk to yourself
with laptop most of it is taken by computer and its various cables.

I don't have a desk, so I'm playing with the laptop on my knees. I need only a power cord, since I don't use an external monitor and I can use a bluetooth mouse.

And it takes less space than with a desktop PC. Period. :)

I still have a desktop PC (actually two) as well, and I can't really agree with that. A monitor and a keyboard for my desktop PC does not take less space than my laptop with a mouse (it has the monitor and keyboard integrated into it). And I don't really see much difference whether the USB cable of the mouse goes to the side of my laptop, or the back of the tower PC on the floor. If anything, the latter is more inconvenient, if the cord gets tangled with the power and monitor cables and you have to crawl under the desk to sort it out.

Anyway, I mostly use a wireless mouse (and occasionally a keyboard) with my laptop anyway, so...

The main advantage of the laptop is not really the space savings on a table either, but that it is far more easier to use it anywhere (coffee table in the living room, kitchen table etc.), and put away completely in the cupboard if needed. A desktop PC permanently occupies one table (and sometimes even a whole room) at your home.

Naturally if you have set up a whole desktop environment for your laptop, with external monitors, docking stations, external hard drives, printers, fax machines, telex machines, tube radios, B&W TVs etc., then there are no space savings either. But even then you can still take the laptop out of the docking station, and continue using it in e.g. the living room or elsewhere.

Gaming laptops have always been too expensive for my tastes. As soon as I think they've become affordable enough, the gaming industry ups the stakes with newer and better graphics, which causes yesterday's laptops to be incompatible with the new standards. That way the prices are always too high... and Alienware laptops? Forget it. You could get 2 really decent desktops for the price of one good gaming laptop.

If anyone knows of a laptop that plays games well, is upgradable, free of bloatware AND affordable, we're all ears.

Laptop gaming is definitely sub-par.

However, some of my best gaming memories of recent years have been playing on a laptop during downtime on my night shift at work. I finished Ultima 1, Kings Quest 1 + 2. Tex Murphy 1 + 2. Enjoyed them immensely.

I'm unsure what you mean by "incompatible". An old laptop can certainly play newer games too, but slower and/or with less visual treats. If you are playing pretty recent AAA titles, then desktop PCs are definitely more bang for the buck. You pay extra for a laptop being portable. If you don't need that for your gaming PC, then no reason to buy a gaming laptop.

Me, I actually like it a lot that I could easily take e.g. the ASUS G75VW (gaming laptop) to different places, be it inside my home, or to the summer cottage (for rainy days), or even abroad. It is a pretty big and heavy gaming laptop, so I consider it as portable, not mobile. And still run pretty demanding AAA games on it fine. And I was fine with paying extra for that possibility. YMMV.

Really depends on how you define the par experience...

Having been playing on a laptop for over 10 years now, I much prefer it to desktops

I use my laptop for more casual games that I can play while watching TV. If I want to really experience a game it has to be on the desktop with headphones on with no one around to disturb me.