I also tend to think most of those physics games that keep popping out like weeds are just novelties.
Well, physics are something that will naturally evolve and become more complex as processing power increases and games become easier to make. You can't deny that aside from the "novelty" physics games like Gish, solid physics can enhance most any game.
Super Mario Bros is a prime example; while it's debatable whether or not the original requires more than a high school level of math, the way they implemented the physics (momentum, destructible environments, platforms-on-pulleys...) is what made the game stand out to the point where it's still fun today. So for a game like SMB, it's really about that marriage of physics and good game design that results in solid mechanics and make a game fun to play. All of this remains true for Mario 64 and Mario Galaxy, but as you can see, it's progressively getting much more complicated.
At the same time, it's getting easier to implement a complicated physics engine without doing all the math yourself. I think we all know that there's more to making a good game than slapping on someone else's code, but I don't think an absolute understanding of this math is necessary unless you're trying to do something in a very specific manner. For example, I usually take whatever shortcuts I can find, but I learned all about elastic collision recently because I was going for a slightly different feel from the examples I found. So I personally only go out of my way to learn something if it benefits my game, but learning just for the sake of learning is cool, if that's your thing.
Sorry, my posts always end up a lot longer than I originally envision...
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