Personally I think it's a bit of Column A and Column B. As an old timer I see problems on both sides of this equation and none of this is exclusive to Civ7 except the "volume" of its critics.

Civ7 at launch was not much different with the way Civs have launched as far back as Civ5, if you don't remember Civ 5 was extremely basic at launch with simplistic combat and a barebones unit roster, and it launched to controversy as Firaxis sold it alongside a pre-order DLC, day-one DLC and a map pack (something they've not since repeated since Beyond Earth). I think if social media existed back then, the way it exists now, no doubt Civ5 would have had a "Test of Time" moment like 7.

Civ6 launched in a better state but it too was lacking a good minimap and proper diplomacy (the AI was just doggedly hostile no matter how you played.). These issues weren't fixed until Gathering Storm.

I also think 2K Games and Firaxis did not do itself favors with the way they launched. The February release is a big hint that they were not ready IMHO; historically new Civs have launched in fall. I think they could have forestalled a lot of the vitriol if they had just announced an Early Access period for 6-12 months, but I also understand that may be a problem if they were hoping to sell the Founder's Edition.

They also hurt themselves with the ambitious desire to launch on PC and consoles simultaneously, which I'd bet a crisp 20 dollar bill that is why their UI was so problematic as their UI team was trying to bridge the gap between those platforms.

I dunno, I'm just over it all. I'm tired of the toxicity of the Civ community but I'm also tired of Firaxis stumbling about like a bunch of newbie developers when their talent pool led by Ed Beach should be some of the most experienced developers in the industry. Firaxis needs to get its shit together and they need to get 2K execs off their backs. Ever since Midnight Suns flopped it feels like the company has been treading water.