I just purchased a Amd 8845HS for about 750$ and I can run most games at mid spec.

Tossed in a 4TB SSD and I'm very happy with my purchase. I have Mint installed along with Windows.

Price out a 4TB Mac, you'll be spending an unholy amount of money. Plus in a few years when the 8TB SSDs are cheaper it's an easy upgrade.

Honestly, pretty much every laptop that isn't an absolute potato is good enough for gaming.

Contrary to what both people who don't really play games and people who make their gaming rigs their entire identity tend to think, the vast majority of games on the market run just fine on half-decent hardware with a concession here and there as far as resolution, particle systems, etc go. At $700+ you can get plenty of bang for your buck; even more so if you buy secondhand.

A desktop, lol

Most people playing games or on a desktop, not a laptop.

There are cheap gaming laptops from Dell, HP, MSI, Asus, Gigabyte, Lenovo, Acer, Razer.

Dell G15

Steam Deck + bluetooth mouse and keyboard + external monitor if you want