I mean it isn't but sort of is at the same time. It firstly depends on what kind of kickstarter it is. There are many ways where its just a system for a publisher to gauge interest in the project. Those are typically just preorders however many others are just throwing money into a well and hoping something comes of it. I get people's hatred of crowdfunding and it can easily be a trap. Where a ton of people are just there to get the money and leg it or who are simply too incompetent to use the funds properly. Hell even experienced developer can be too incompetent, double fine studios/Tim Schafer is a poster child for this. While I love their work, they had a horrid run with crowdfunding and I guess it should have been expected since they are always late and overspend on their budget when they were working with publishers.

Now with all the negatives said, I think crowdfunding in all its forms can lead to wonderful project that simply couldn't have existed due to a lack of interest by publishers. Hell I doubt we would had Baldur's Gate 3 without crowdfunding and this isn't talking exclusively about BG 3 since the Divinity Original sin games really got the ball rolling for Larian Studios. Crowdfunding can lead to the rebirth of genres once thought dead.

This has nothing directly to do with The Day Before, but: Backing a Kickstarter is something completely different and that has to come into peoples heads. Preorders are for a mostly finished product that will 100% ship. The devs have enough funding from investors and publishers, the game will be released no matter how little preorders they will get. Crowdfunding however is for an idea in its infancy that might never be finished. Crowdfunding is an investment.

But where is the difference in this case, The Day Before? Well, easy: When you invest in a kickstarter, the company has to use the money you invested to actually develop the game. They can't buy fancy cars with the money, they need to put it to good use. If the company uses the money for their own personal benefit, they can be sued for that. For preorders thats not the case.

Sadly, legally, it ain't the same.

That is important because in some jurisdictions "preorder" has legal implications and importantly, obligations for the seller. A kickstarter does not. Not yet at least, over in Germany there's a discussion about whether crowdfunding is just a form of taking preorders (in the legal sense), which would grant customers the same legal protections then.