I hate how shit gets named.

Free to apply games are like you said, manipulative and generally whale chasing bastards. They don't ask for donations, so they don't fit the meme.

I think the meme is about free games, funded by donations through patreon or pay what you want pricing that are basically donations at the whim of the players. The ones that don't have an in game shop and are actually free to play but not F2P.