Just saw that a version of Galak-Z called "Variant-S" dropped on the Switch. Adoring the original on ps4 I got incredible excited, however upon opening the application it appears to be some kind of strange free to play version?
My gut reaction was to feel pretty bummed out (a game I love and have been anticipating for the Switch - yay! in a weird re-fitted free to play version - buu!)

Anyhoot, before passing any real judgment I wanted to check if anyone around here has put some time into this version and if so, what did they think?

I played the first 3 or 4 sectors. It's a very different thing - the flight model is still mostly there, but the missions (at least the ones I've played) are much shorter and totally linear. You either pilot the mech or fighter; you can't switch in the middle of a mission, and the missile/grapple abilities are tied to a meter that charges as you do damage. There are some loot box mechanics and ship customization, plus a mode where you assemble teams of bots, and challenge other players' bot teams online. At least in the early game, the F2P stuff didn't feel egregious; I was willing to overlook the differences because it was free, but I ended up not putting a lot of time into it because it ultimately felt shallow to me.

Oh, and the plot is a direct continuation of the story in Galak-Z: The Void? Weird choice, there.