You'd think by Hitman 3 I'd stop being surprised at Agent 47's capacity to turn anything into a weapon, but my jaw hit the floor last night as I knocked out a guard with nothing but a banana. A banana! The notoriously soft fruit with non-threatening vibes that occasionally masquerades as a telephone. Clobbering someone with a banana is fine and all, but thanks to a little-used Hitman mechanic you can unlock the full power of its slippery peel.
Have you ever placed an object in Hitman without dropping it? The game hardly ever mentions that you can do this, but they're actually two separate actions. Holding Caps Lock (or both bumpers on a controller) with an object in your hand allows you to formally place it in a deliberate spot. This precision is usually only useful for planting remote mines, but placing the banana in this way squishes it into a slippery banana peel. Slap it along the path of someone you'd like to be less awake and, congratulations, you've laid the perfect trap. No one will ever see it coming.
Other than being extremely funny to inflict on an unsuspecting buffoon, the banana peel is also a uniquely handy pacification tool. I can't think of another non-lethal melee weapon in the game that doubles as a landmine. You also don't draw suspicion for holding or placing the peel trap—who could suspect a man simply enjoying a tasty fruit snack?—which gives it a leg up on Hitman's actual sleep gas mines. Slipping on a peel is considered an accident, so guards won't be on alert if there are witnesses to the fall.
The only thing the banana kinda sucks at? Getting thrown. This is the one area where the banana's squishiness comes into play. The impact does knock targets down, but they get back up immediately pissed at the guy who just chucked fruit at them. If you're desperate you could toss the banana as a sound distraction wherever it lands, but it'll also explode on impact.
I've only seen two of Hitman 3's levels so far, but I hope there's at least one banana on every map. Versatile knockout tools are valuable in Hitman's difficult Silent Assassin Suit Only challenges. I already found two on the opening Dubai level, so that's a good start. Bananas were apparently first added in Hitman 2's Haven Island DLC map, so I have some work to do there as well.
Hitman 3 is a ton of fun so far, though transferring all of my progress from Steam to the Epic Games Store was a headache. We have a handy guide to help make that process go more smoothly for you.
