Destiny 2 Studio Apologizes For Use of Nazi Slogan In Recent Update

Destiny 2 developer Bungie has apologized for the use of a phrase in the game that has been tied [...]

Destiny 2 developer Bungie has apologized for the use of a phrase in the game that has been tied to a Nazi slogan. The use of the phrase appeared as a weekly challenge in Destiny 2's current Season of the Chosen and Bungie has said that it's looking to alter the message in a forthcoming update.

The phrase that lies at the crux of this issue is that of "Blood and Honor", which is a common slogan that was used by the Hitler Youth organization when Nazi Germany was in power. As such, the refrain is very much rooted in anti-Semitism and brings with it quite a bit of baggage. The reason for it appearing in Destiny 2 isn't really clear, but it doesn't seem to be something that Bungie did on purpose by any means.

In a statement given to Kotaku, a representative from Bungie said that the appearance of the slogan was accidental. "Any connection to anti-Semitism in Destiny is completely unintentional. Bungie is emphatically committed to inclusion and human rights, and will never stand for anti-Semitism," the spokesperson said. "We are already preparing fixes in an upcoming patch. We apologize to all of our players that were hurt by the references, and we are grateful to our community for bringing their concerns to our attention."

This is a very confusing, bizarre situation to have seen transpire with Destiny 2, but it's quite likely that Bungie's assertion of it being an accident is just that. In all likelihood, the naming conventions of these challenges that appear in the game don't get cleared by a wide variety of members at the studio which is probably how this situation came about to begin with. My assumption would be that someone unfamiliar with the phrase's history decided to use it on a whim without knowing the blowback it would cause. Let's just hope that's the truth, though.

If you're looking to dive back into Destiny 2 for yourself, the game is currently available to play on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.

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