How important is a processor for gaming?

im thinking of buying a alienware m15x but not sure about the processor. im already spending 1400 and thats more then i would like so i really dont want to pay an extra 200 - 1200 for something i might not need. i have a hardrive, memory upgrade, and the best available option for the video card. the games i will be playing are stuff like,



WoW

War hammer

Prototype

Dragons age: origins

mirrors edge



and so on. i would love to run on full settings but main thing is just to run smoothly for me. im not planing on like playing high end games, running itunes, streaming netflix, watching youtube and all that kinda stuff at the same time. mostly if im gaming it will be the only thing up, maybe a itunes some times. so to end how important is a processor if im just doing like one major thing at a time. if you want specific specs ill post what i have from Dell. thx guys!



Software %26amp; Services

Genuine Windows庐 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English

Intel庐 Core鈩?i3-330M 2.13GHz (3M cache)

1 Year Basic Service Plan

1GB ATI Radeon鈩?Mobility HD 5850

15.6-inch WideHD+ 1600x900 (900p) WLED

4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1066MHz

250GB SATAII 7,200RPM

Slot-Load Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD+-RW, CD-RW)

Primary - 6-cell (56Watt) Lithium-Ion Battery

Wireless 1520 802.11n Half Mini-Card

Alienware M15x, Cosmic Black

Personalize

AlienFX Quasar Blue

Alienhead 3D

Steam and Portal鈩?Factory Installed

Automatic Updates: On

Also Includes

Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio

Internal Bluetooth 2.1 Mini-Card - 2.1 Enhanced Data Rate

Adobe Acrobat Reader

Standard NameplateHow important is a processor for gaming?
As a general rule, for gaming, the order of importance for hardware (most important to least important) is as follows:



GPU %26gt;= CPU %26gt; Memory



Use this knowledge and some good sense to make your own judgment. I can't really help you with specifics because I'm out of the loop with today's hardware.



For example, if you're choosing between getting a better CPU or better GPU, choose the GPU at the cost of the CPU. Using the same logic, both the CPU and GPU take priority over your memory stats. That being said, I'd recommend a bare minimum of 2GB of RAM in your system, with 4GB or more being highly recommended.



A further note: depending on any upgrade plans you may have, it may be wise to get the best CPU possible, at the cost of the GPU, but only if you are certain you will get a "next-gen" GPU once it becomes available (GPU performance gains between generations are generally much more significant than CPU gains). Again, this is a situational scenario at best, and means you will have to go through the trouble of upgrading later on, and spending a little bit extra overall. If you can't be bothered, just go with the above mentioned order of priority as a guide.

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