Why do we need a paid app to record audio from the system? Surely it's a small enough job for a small utility/script? This seems very Mac ecosystem to me.
Indeed. Windows has had a Sound Recorder since 3.1, and it's possible to record the currently playing audio if you select the right input (usually named "Stereo Mix" or similar.)
https://guidebookgallery.org/screenshots/sound
Support for the "Stereo Mix" audio source is a relatively recent thing - and my understanding is that, even now, it's driver-dependent. It most certainly wasn't available in Windows 3.1.