SOUND VOLTEX III GRAVITY WARS (AC/PC)

Probably because Konami has "pandered" to non-Japanese countries with their Bemani games (i.e. Paseli features are all included with a regular credit in the Korean version of IIDX, and I would assume the same would apply to the SEA/Korean versions of SDVX as well).

Also, free-to-play MMOs are very popular, period. Heck, in Japan, you have Phantasy Star Online 2 (which, funny enough, has IP blocks, and you need ARKS-Layer to access the game outside Japan, but I digress), where you have to pay an optional monthly fee for exclusive items/extra storage/etc. A pay-to-play game like Final Fantasy XIV is a dying breed by comparison.

Also, keep in mind that the only reason Paseli even exists was because of Japanese regulations (in other words, Konami didn't get the full profit from a regular credit, so they invented this system so they could get 100% of the profit every time someone paid for a round that way. In return for that extra money, the player would get extra features). There isn't a need for Paseli anywhere other than Japan because of this.

I will give them credit that the unlocks you have in this "home" version transfers to the arcade version, but it's absolutely useless if you live in, say, Tokyo, where you're within walking distance from the nearest arcade (and as I've mentioned earlier, you have all the songs in the arcade version rather than just 300 in the "home" version). It's near impossible to defend the ticket system because, as I've said earlier, it ruins the purpose of playing the game at home. Like you folks mentioned, it costs the same as a credit in the arcade version, so again, why would you want to pay for just one round of an inferior version of a game that you can play at the arcade for the exact same price?

There's a difference between "We need the monthly fee to help maintain servers" and this being a desparate cash grab. Konami could have very easily made this game (and Infinitas) similar to Rock Band where you got a bunch of songs on the disc (or in this case, the .exe file), and you could have paid for DLC packs containing songs from newer versions. Unfortunately, that is clearly not the case. The fact people find what they are doing "fine" is a bit worrying because it could mean other companies could follow this model of business in the future if this is successful. At least with Infinitas, you only have to play a monthly fee to play as many times as you like...