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I would have to disagree that Identity is seperate from gameplay issues. To me, identity is fundamental to persistent worlds. Without identity, gameplay enjoyment is diminished.

While it is possible to have an identity based only on looks, a name, and play skill, it subtracts from the value of having a persistent avatar. Many people often consider their avatars as extensions of themselves. With that, they can ask the same questions about player identity that are asked about personal identity. "Who am I? What seperates me from everbody else? What else could I have been?"

If players can be anything they want, then it remains that only their real life abilities and personalities are seperating them from the other players, as well as maybe some in game appearance and Alias. Nothing about their gameplay character distinguishes it from any other gameplay character. Without the ability to distinguish yourself you may as well play an arcade game over and over again (Albeit one that remembers how many monsters you've killed and gives you some extra abilities each time you play).

Games with a lot of identity usually have elements of 'player roles' and 'customisation.' WoW has class, equipment and talents. The class allows you to have a role that you can develop over time. (A sense of history and purpose). The equipment allows you to distinguish yourself from other players (Achievement, History, Ownership, Distinction, Choice, Personalisation). Talents allow you to specialise your role somewhat (Choice, Development, Personalisation). Looking quickly back at that, it seems player identity is currently based on several factor's:

• History - Giving a character a glimpse of where they have come from, their development, and a possible view into the future of their character.
• Purpose - Letting a player feel like they are needed for something other than just an empty slot to fill
• Achievement - Rewarding the player, through a new game artifact (ability, item, armour), for what they have done.
• Personalisation - Allowing players the ability to seperate themselves from other players.
• Choice - Providing players with the freedom to make a choice that impacts on their future.

While there's bound to be something i'm missing, the identified attributes above give a baseline for what provides a person with a player identity. Often there's a lot of emphasis on equipment as the provider of these attributes, with 'class --> role --> equipment --> choices' and that's enough. I doubt it's the only way of providing them though. And in the 'flexible roles' idea, it's necessary to come up with some alternatives.

Possibly some rough ideas : Dynamic equipment (what role you are in now determines it's stats), Non-affective abilities (i.e. they're nice to have but you can still get by without them), deeper tradeskill system. (See the recent post on this site about Herbalism)

I agree that Unlocking roles has many personal benefits, but allowing people to be anybody also risks them losing any chance to distinguish themselves in the crowd.