git --bare init is not wrong, it is just another way of expressing the same (errors, despite) work.
As a quick view of the git (1) toplex, the manpage is confirmed to --barebe a global option for all Git that affect repository directory detection:
Treat the repository as a bare repository. If GIT_DIR environment
is not set, it is set to the current working directory.
Git " ", git --bare init /. --bare 1.5.6 CLI.