While that may be technically true, Reaver, there's a psychological element to it as well. While this isn't a game you can 'win', few people really enjoy being ineffective at the roles they play. Which is why you rarely see a street samurai that specializes in holdouts, or a decker that uses the cheapest deck available so he can let his 'skillz' show despite the gear, or a mage with no weapon skills, no combat spells, and only a couple ranks in conjuring.
No, you're going to see a lot of street sammies with assault rifles, even heavy weapons if they can swing it. And a LOT of Predators. Why? Because they are solid pieces of gear, near the top of what you can get with starting funds/availability, and they work well in combat. And so on. So while there are, technically, a multitude of options, there are a few distinct archetypes that pretty much everyone plays into. If you're not, then that is a deliberate choice to be something outside the norm. The monowhip-wielding samurai is more of a snowflake than the pixie mage.
The difference is that there is more room for experimentation and customization in gear (although not nearly as much as there used to be), and there is decidedly less so when dealing with metatypes. Combined with the fact that the priority system basically shits all over people who want to make 'hybrid' characters (especially if one of those roles is magic or matrix) unless they are in a very narrow focus (a CHA-tradition mage doubling as a face), and the feeling of wanting more increases.
It is part of the reason D&D 4e sucked so hard, and why D&D 5th isn't much better. It is why you don't see this problem nearly as much in systems like Mutants and Masterminds or Champions. Why? Because in M&M or Champions, literally everything is possible, though it may take work with the DM to translate some things. Sure, I can do an M&M character that has, say, Cold Control powers, with fighting skills and appropriate gear. That's easy. I can also easily do someone with the ability of Nacho Cheese Control, and make them able to do crazy shit with that. And because I spent an hour making the character just to say I can, I have it out of my system, and play the cold controller in games.
See, sometimes people get an idea in their head, and if they aren't able to work that idea into something playable, then it is going to bug them constantly until they get it out of their system. Which means they're going to bug their DM about it, or keep suggesting it here, or other places. Sure, the idea might be as stupid as Nacho Cheese Control. But once it is out of their system, they'll be able to consider more 'normal' concepts.
