343 Industries wanted to recognize Juneteenth, a yearly holiday in the US that celebrates the emancipation of the slaves. But they did so by adding a player card cosmetic called "Bonobo". Seriously. They actually did that. You can read their apology beneath.
More bad news for Halo. Nope, it's not about the nonexistent Forge mode or the disappointing additions from Season 2. Sadly, this time it concerns something far more serious: racism. Okay, we'll give 343 the benefit of the doubt, it was accidental racism. But it's wild that something like this could even happen in 2022; you imagine there's a room full of people that check even the smallest new update to the game, but apparently not...
Halo's Juneteenth Catastrophe
343 Industries released cosmetics for Juneteenth, a US holiday that celebrates the emancipation of the slaves, but one of the cosmetics was a nameplate palette called: Bonobo. That's also the name of an endangered primate. Now, apparently it was referring to a tool in the Halo engine, but you can see why so many fans were shocked and outraged.
Have The Halo Devs Apologized?
Yes. Of course, they've apologized. Good grief, what a blunder. Here's what they had to say to the community:
We were made aware of a palette option for our Juneteenth emblem that contained a term that was offensive and hurtful. The team immediately addressed this issue via an update. We are a studio and franchise that is committed to inclusivity where everyone is welcome and supported to be their true self. On behalf of 343, I apologize for making a celebrated moment a hurtful moment.
It was obviously unintended, but still. Stuff like that just cannot happen, this is meant to be a triple A. No wonder the playerbase fell off a cliff...