The number of women in FFVIII has more to do with balance, I think. Other games in the series have far fewer major characters who are women (understandable considering that most soldiers are men), but FFVIII wanted to 'even it out' a little. Romance is a driving force of the plot; but romance is less easy with a smaller female cast (unless they were to write in some homosexual characters, which would give all the American censors brain haemorrhages). Also, strong female characters appeal to a wide audience, both male and female.

The characters are all physically attractive because, mainly, of the superficiality of many people who buy video games. Hormonal, pubescent teenagers simply won't care about a character unless they're physically 'perfect' ('perfect' according to stereotype, that is), so unfortunately those of us who appreciate 'inner beauty' are often neglected... not that I'm saying that the FFVIII women lack inner beauty, of course, I've merely digressed a little.

THe sheer number of women who try to 'make moves' on Squall is partially a comedic device, I think. He shuns people, doesn't express his feelings and has few friends, so it's quite entertaining to see how he deals with the attention.

Rinoa was first drawn to Squall because of his looks ("You're the best looking guy here..."), which sadly reinforces the notion that looks matter more than personality when finding someone. Of course, that changed when they got to know one another, but still...

Again. I must disagree with your assesment of Laguna as 'infernal'. He may seem to have the 'devil's own luck', but really his plans aren't too scatterbrained. They're impulsive and he doesn't always explain them well, but hew generally knows what he's doing. As for his attractiveness to women, that's a combination of humour, charisma, positivity and looks. He not arrogant, overbearing or sexist, so there's little that women wouldn't like about him. Interesting point about the fates of the women he meets, though...