Swifty it's not that, it's a closed beta. They did offer a "Premium" version which included alpha access and marine black armour (when the final game is released). Though it didn't last long. However it did allow those of us who have played ns1 for neigh on 10 years to give a little something back to the team.
It seems now, they are a little short on capital, being a very small independent team. Hence the reason for the closed beta access for pre-orders. Whilst i grant you it's not in a total playable state right now (lag issues, key features still not implemented), it's clear the dev's are working as hard as they can to produce the game that they promise.
So if you fancy a game which is a little different to the norm, don't be afraid to give this a try.