'Gaming' is just a marketing term. The only really important feature is how the keys feel, and you can't test that beforehand. You can overpay for a mechanical keyboard of course, that way you won't end up with something terrible, but I've had many standard ones I prefer the feel of. They also have the added benefit of usually surviving a liquid spill, while mechanicals are guaranteed to fail. The higher end ones always seem to sacrifice some durability for that extra tactile feedback.
I'm in the market for one myself actually, but it's a bit of a jungle.