Yeah, I also don't think they've broken backwards compat ever. Super high end charger from 2024 can charge old equipment from 2014 just fine with regular 5V.

What was broken was the promise of a "single cable to rule them all", partly due to manufacturers ignoring the requirements of USB-C (missing resistors or PD chips to negotiate voltages, requiring workarounds with A-to-C adapters), and a myriad of optional stuff, that might be supported or not, without a clear way to indicate it.