The USB mouse ("hockey-puck") was particularly bad, as it wasn't easy to orient. The Might Mouse trackball was pretty bad, too. The others didn't have major deficiencies in my opinion. What in particular do you find fault with the others?
The Pro Mouse had one button when five were becoming standard. The Mighty Mouse would only right-click if you lifted your index finger off the mouse entirely. The multitouch on the Magic Mouse is woeful in terms of discoverability and frustratingly erratic. Ergonomics have been consistently poor, owing to Apple's refusal to make a mouse that actually fits the human hand. None of their mice are comfortable in palm grip, because they're needlessly low and flat. The rounded edges and gloss plastic of the Mighty Mouse and Pro mouse are difficult to control in fingertip or claw grip.
By comparison, Microsoft achieved near-perfection in mouse design with the venerable Wheel Mouse Optical 1.1a. After more than a decade, that mouse is still perfectly usable for competitive gaming. Contemporary high-end mice from companies like Steelseries and Zowie imitate the shape of the WMO very closely, because it's exceedingly comfortable for a wide range of grip styles and hand sizes.
The Pro Mouse had one button when five were becoming standard.
Apple has always produced mice that have at most one physical button, while providing in the OS to support third-party mice that have more. This isn't something that started with Ive. There are plenty of people who think Apple should produce mice that have more than one button throughout its history.
Having used all of these mice extensively, primarily in desktop publishing and programming environments, I haven't found any of the issues you mention a problem. That's not to say others haven't. I enjoyed using the Magic Mouse in particular. I never had any ergonomic issues with any of them, other than the Apple USB mouse.
You mention gaming, and I can see how none of Apple's mice would be good for this. And it's great that there are third-party companies producing great mice, and have been for a long time. (Speaking of Microsoft, I've heard great things about their keyboards as well.) Given my (admittedly personal) experience with Apple's mice, I find the phrasing "consistently awful" to be hyperbole and unwarranted. That's not to say they're the best. There's a wide range between "near-perfection" and "consistently awful".
Apple are supposed to be the paragon of industrial design, but their mice tend to fall prey to style over substance. Their mice designs look lovely, but there's no ergonomic rationale behind their shape. If you think that the Magic Mouse is satisfactory, I'd suggest trying some genuinely high quality third-party mice - the Logitech Marathon or MX Master, or anything by Mionix or Zowie. I think you'll be shocked at the difference.
Gaming is the extreme case for mouse use, but it's not an edge case. A good gaming mouse is simply a good mouse - not a puck that you push around the desk, but an extension of your hand with a sensor underneath. eSports gamers simply demand an excellent sensor and high-quality switches in an ergonomic package.
