I also don't get the Sunshine hate. Probably one of the most visceral and just purely fun platformers I've ever played. While Mario 64 had a better layout, in terms of level design and all that, I felt that Super Mario Sunshine controlled better and had more possibilities. They didn't fully explore them, but what they did have was pretty good. The story was god-awful, yes, and the final boss was a bit disappointing, but I just plain enjoyed controlling Mario.
Also, the tropical atmosphere was somewhat repetitive, but I liked the vacation-y feel of it. Plus I'm sick and tired of the grass/fire/ice standard video game environments.
I still intend to buy this game. I never owned it, only borrowed it twice, extensively.
The other games I generally agree with, though I never owned or got into Rogue Squadron or Animal Crossing.