Let me see:

-Tech fans preferred the PS2 and the Xbox because of the DVD size (Nintendo came up with this 1.5 GB mini-disc joke while Sony and Microsoft both used DVD-5 and DVD-9), the Emotion Engine (PS2) and the P3 (Xbox) were hyped as hell and people mocked the "Gekko", the PS2 and Xbox accepted DVD movies and offered HDD (PS2 optional, Xbox mandatory)...

-Look fans said that the Gamecube was a joke ("C'mon, a purple cube?, seriously"), and most of them didn't like the phat Xbox, PS2 was the best looking with the design, the vertical option (everyone used that later) and then the slim model...

-Teenagers and adults preferred the PS2 and Xbox, just picture PS2: Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto, Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid, Devil May Cry, etc., picture the Xbox: Halo, more shooters, Dead or Alive... Now picture the Gamecube: Luigi's Mansion, Super Mario Sunshine ("Sunshine??? SERIOUSLY"), Pikmin, Pokemon... Obviously they had the better version of RE4 but people bought the PS2 one, and they didn't care about Metroid Prime to push it enough, the only game that teenagers and adults could agree on those days was Super Smash Bros: Melee (no wonder why it was the best selling game)...

-The rest of the gamers that didn't cared about external look, tech, and the "kiddy" thing, bought the PS2 because most of the games were there, including casuals...

The reason i hated the Gamecube is that it seemed every exclusive game that appealed to my taste had so many things i didn't like, like Super Mario Sunshine, i really dislike that game (and not for the name), Luigi's Mansion was good but it had some disturbing things for me that the devs didn't think through, Pikmin for me was a joke (with all the respect from the fans here, it just wasn't what i expected)... to that time, i only had 4 games that i liked and it was not worth it, so i sold the ones i didn't like along with the Gamecube (and for more, i had luck with that) and i used the money to buy PS2 and GBA games... Lucky for me i saved the games that i did like and i play them on the Wii...

How I wish. I mean, the second was easy because it was mainly a platformer. The third was a Zelda-like game, so it was hard for me to finish (there was some japanese-writing part at the very end, before the final boss). About the fourth I'm not sure. I gave up this game because of some impact racing mini-game. Need to retry. No doubt, I would buy everyone of them.

because its controller was designed by an epileptic 3 toed sloth??

Nope. This is a good controller, very comfortable imo.

not everyone is in love with Ninty's first party offerings. 3rd party support was abysmal.

I think people who feel the price of the PS3 is the main factor for it not outselling it's competiors are in for a rude awaking when the proposed price cut comes. The boost isn't going to be as "earth shattering" as people suspect. The overall bottom line applies to the PS3 in that Sixaxis was an afterthought, and Home is an attempt at trying to bring more of the XBL experience to PS3 users.

...I agree with your perspective on the PS2, like the N64 it want against what everyone else was doing at the time, and thats making something for everyone. But, the overall statement applies in that Sony lost their direction with the PS3.

Why do people dis the GC controller? Is it simply because it's different?

PS2

1. It took to much effort to bootleg
2. Not enough games to bootleg

For 3rd world Countries, it's a little bit of a necessity. Only the rich can afford real copies.

It's because it's designed for ergonomics and ease of use, not aesthetics.