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Radar-GTA4-wanted

Upon gaining a Wanted Level, a Police Search Radius is centered on the player's position.

In Grand Theft Auto IV, the Wanted Level measures the extent of the human and material means that the Liberty City Police Department (LCPD), the Alderney State Police (ASP) and other law enforcement agencies (i.e. N.O.O.S.E. or the FIB) will deploy in order to apprehend the player after committing a crime.

Overview[]

As in previous games, if the player commits a crime, a wanted level ranging from one to six stars will arise. The more dangerous the player gets, the more stars the player will gain, and the more hostile the police will become accordingly. The wanted level is indicated by a six-star gauge on the top-right corner of the screen, white stars indicating that the police see the player, grey stars that they do not, and blinking grey stars that the player is losing the police (i.e. out of the search radius, see below).

A wanted level will always be accompanied by a flashing blue and red search radius emanating from the player’s position on the Radar. Cops are represented by flashing blue and red icons. The player will remain at the centre of the search radius as long as the cops see the player. If the cops lose sight of the player, the radius will stop and remain at the last location where the player was last seen. Naturally, if the cops spot the player again, the radius will recenter on the player. If the player leaves the search radius for a sufficient amount of time, typically several seconds, the cops will abandon their search and the wanted level will dissolve.

In Easy Fare, the game briefly explains how the wanted level functions: “The area the cops search in is represented by the flashing zone on the Radar. Cops in this zone are marked by flashing red and blue icons. To lose your wanted level escape the flashing zone and keep a low profile. If you are seen leaving the zone by the cops then they will refocus their search and a new zone will be created. If the wanted stars are grayed out then the Cops have lost sight of you. The cops are less likely to identify you if you swap vehicles or run through alleyways and side streets.” It is true that swapping vehicles out of the cops’ sight will result in their delaying to recognise the player, though only for a couple of seconds at best, making it a highly unreliable technique to escape from the cops.

A voice-over of a police dispatcher will be heard upon acquiring a wanted level in a voice that is less muffled and easier to understand than in the 3D Universe. The dispatcher will typically mention the crime committed by the player and the location of the incident as in the following case of reckless driving: “Control, I need assistance for a reckless driver on Albany Avenue”.

The player may not buy any items (weapons, clothes, or food, except from vending machines and street vendors), enter a taxi as a passenger (except for Roman's Car Service), enter bars or clubs, or partake in activities like TV, Darts, Bowling, etc. while wanted by the police.

Arrestation[]

The police can arrest the player at any wanted level, though it is likeliest with a one-star level as it is the only level that won’t result in the police using their firearms. The player can get arrested while on foot (only with one star) or in a stationary vehicle. In the former case, the player can resist arrest, which will immediately spark a two-star wanted level and cause the police to shoot. After being arrested, the player will respawn at the nearest police station, stripped of weapons and body armour.

Clearing a Wanted Level[]

A wanted level can be cleared by:

  • Entering a Pay ‘N’ Spray. The player must be out of the police’s sight (i.e. have grey stars) and have a suitable vehicle (emergency vehicles, vehicles too big to fit in the garage, armoured cars, ice cream trucks, and certain airport vehicles are not permitted).
  • Using a bed, whether to save the game or not.
  • Starting or completing certain missions. Driving a male friend back home after an activity will also clear the wanted level. With a female friend, the player must lose the cops before driving her back home.
  • Calling Kiki Jenkins or Francis McReary (if the option has been unlocked) will clear up to three stars.
  • Calling 267-555-0100. This is a cheat code that will block the "One Man Army" Achievement, though it won’t affect "Trophies" in the PS3 version.

Police bribes no longer exist in the HD Universe.

Police Behavior[]

Police in Grand Theft Auto IV are well armed, smarter, more determined and more lethal than in previous Grand Theft Auto games; they can even respond to crimes committed out of their sight, as civilians can call the police on their cell phones to report crimes. Police officers can also come to the player's aid, as long as they don't have a wanted level, intervening in fist fights to apprehend violent Pedestrians, and providing suppressive fire against armed threats in shoot-outs.

The police use their available weapons intelligently—an officer with a Pump Action Shotgun will move in closer to the player to compensate for the weapon's short range, while one with an M4A1 will stay back to take advantage of distance. During a chase, officers will coordinate themselves and will attempt to box the player in with several cars, drive faster, use the PIT maneuver and try harder as the player's wanted level increases.

Police officers can commandeer civilian vehicles (parked or occupied) if their vehicles are destroyed, or if a police vehicle is unavailable; they may even commandeer the cars parked in front of the player's safehouses. Inside safehouses and other buildings with interiors, the police will continue to pursue and wound or even kill the player but cannot arrest them.

Wanted Levels[]

One Star[]

This is the only level where the police will not use their firearms (except in multiplayer mode as it lacks a "busted" animation). Instead they will seek to arrest the player. Police Cars will chase the player at moderate speed, trying to corral and box in rather than collide with the player's vehicle. The search radius for one star is approximately two city blocks large.

One star is attained by:

  • Attacking a police officer unarmed or with a melee weapon
  • Attacking civilians
  • Attacking a dead civilian unarmed or with a melee weapon in sight of a police officer
  • Damaging a vehicle
  • Attacking, crashing into, or climbing on top of an occupied police vehicle
  • Aiming a firearm at a police officer
  • Aiming with a melee weapon or fists on a police officer
  • Shooting (player does not necessarily have to kill anyone. Sometimes the in game dispatch will call this "firearms discharge" or "shots fired"--shooting one near a police officer could result in a two Star Wanted Level)
  • Hitting a pedestrian or a police officer with a vehicle (hitting a police officer will always trigger the star; hitting a civilian requires a bystander to "report" the incident unless in sight of an officer)
  • Stealing a car
  • Driving a vehicle with its alarm blaring in sight of a police officer
  • Passing a toll booth without paying (emergency vehicles are exempt)
  • Drunk-driving in sight of a police officer
  • Repeatedly bumping into a police officer and/or causing them to fall to the ground
  • Spraying people with a water cannon while driving a fire truck
  • Stealing money from a cash register
  • Starting fires or getting caught on fire
  • Obstructing justice when a police officer is chasing or arresting an NPC.
  • Using the wanted level down cheat after clearing a wanted level already, due to a possible glitch. (267-555-0100)
  • Entering a train without enough money to pay the ticket
  • Parking a vehicle in AutoEroticar or the Grotti Showroom and getting back in. It is unknown whether this is intended or a glitch.
  • Some missions and side missions will warrant an automatic one star Wanted Level as part of normal gameplay

Two Stars[]

Police officers will henceforth use their firearms. They will be equipped with sawed-off shotguns. During chases, they will try to overtake the player or run them off-road. They will also use their cars to try and box the player in if they crash. Police officers now shoot to kill.

Two stars are attained by:

  • Discharging a firearm or detonating an explosive device in the vicinity of a police officer
  • Repeatedly punching a police officer
  • Destroying many vehicles at once
  • Killing many people in a short space of time
  • Destroying a fuel pump at a gas station
  • Resisting arrest
  • Flying over restricted airspace in a helicopter (FIA Runway, Civilization Committee)
  • Stealing certain cars for Brucie's Exotic Exports
  • Maintaining a one-star wanted level for a certain amount of time
  • Destroying a Gruppe 6 Securicar
  • Some missions and side missions in Grand Theft Auto IV will warrant an automatic two star Wanted Level as part of normal gameplay. Examples include Easy Fare and Smackdown
  • In the mission Have a Heart, if the police notices the corpses in the trunk of the Voodoo when the trunk is open

Three Stars[]

At a three-star Wanted Level, the player loses the ability to board the subway; and Police Vehicles become more aggressive in their pursuit, attempting to pin the player's vehicle against buildings and run them off the road. NOOSE Patriotism and Immigration Authority now begin to assist the LCPD by setting up roadblocks on main roads and bridges; also sending NOOSE Cruisers and NOOSE Patriots to pursue the player. The NOOSE Patriots will attempt to ram the player from the front, putting the player and Police Officers inside at risk of a windshield ejection from their vehicle. Strong and fast vehicles are recommended. Motorcycles are not suggested due to the aggressive driving of the Police, whilst helicopters cannot be used to escape due to the police always having sight of the player.

A Police Maverick is now called in, it can be heard on the radio as "Dispatch Air Unit from _______.". The Police Maverick will shine a spotlight on the player at night and open fire if the Police Officers on board get a clear shot. The Police Maverick, however, periodically breaks off from pursuit and retreats if the player goes underground, stays inside a large structure for a long time, or kills both riflemen on board. In The Ballad of Gay Tony, Police Mavericks' riflemen are equipped with Advanced Machine Guns instead of Carbine Rifles. Police Predators are dispatched if the player is in or near water. Like the Police Maverick, the Police Predator has two riflemen armed with M4 Carbine Rifles on board. Evading a three-or-higher star wanted level in a helicopter is impossible as the center of the search radius will stay fixed on the player when flying.

Three stars are attained by:

Four Stars[]

At four stars, the FIB and/or the NOOSE Tactical Response Unit join the fray and the player is confronted by Enforcers and/or FIB Buffaloes in addition to the previously mentioned forces. Tactical Response Unit Officers and FIB Agents come four to a vehicle and are armed with Carbine Rifles, although some of them carry SMGs and Pump Action Shotguns, and wear body armor for protection. The LCPD Pilot and the LCPD riflemen in the Police Maverick will leave to allow NOOSE Tactical Response Unit Pilot and NOOSE Tactical Response Unit riflemen (if NOOSE TRU is deployed). The search area is approximately the size of Bohan. In The Ballad of Gay Tony, all Law Enforcement Officers start firing upon the player while in pursuit at this level, and NOOSE Tactical Response Unit Officers and/or FIB Agents use Assault SMGs and Automatic Shotguns as well as the aforementioned weapons against the player. Meanwhile, civilian traffic through the area is heavily restricted, making finding a means of escape difficult.

Four stars are attained by:

Five Stars[]

At five wanted stars, the Police Mavericks will leave and be replaced by two NOOSE Annihilators. In the main game and The Lost and Damned, all Law Enforcement Officers fire upon the player while in pursuit (In The Ballad of Gay Tony, they will do this at four stars), making getaways difficult. The NOOSE Tactical Response Unit Officers and/or the FIB Agents are particularly perilous to engage because their weapons are likely to make short work of the player's getaway vehicle. Due to the increased risk of being shot to death, use of a motorcycle as a getaway vehicle is especially not recommended. All Law Enforcement Officers employ more advanced driving techniques, such as the PIT Maneuver, as they try to make the player spin out of control and crash. FIB and NOOSE Tactical Response Unit cooperation is more apparent at this level, both forces spawning and pursuing the player in equal numbers. NOOSE Cruisers and NOOSE Patriots will now disappear and make room for more Enforcers, FIB Buffaloes, Police Patrols and Police Cruisers. In areas with tall buildings, officers with Combat Sniper rifles will aim and shoot at the player when in their sights.

Five stars are attained by:

Six Stars[]

At a six-star wanted level, the search area is approximately the size of the borough of Broker and Dukes. The number of Police Patrols and Police Cruisers reduces so more FIB Buffaloes and/or NOOSE Enforcers can join the chase/shootout. Surviving and escaping is more difficult, and a very fast and/or durable vehicle is recommended. All Law Enforcement Vehicles fire upon and ram the player relentlessly with very little regard for collateral damage. On foot, the player must move and/or retaliate quickly to avoid being cut down by gunfire. Unlike previous Grand Theft Auto games, the Military is not deployed. The LCPD Officers armed with PSG-1 Sniper Rifles will continue to spawn.

These actions will merit six stars:

  • Continuing to retaliate against Law Enforcement
  • Continuing to cause collateral damage
  • Crossing Police Barricades or flying/swimming/walking (via tracks or Pedestrian Walkways) into areas of Liberty City that the player has not yet unlocked (only in GTA IV, all areas are unlocked in the start of the episodes)
  • Attacking Police Officers guarding the barriers to the locked islands

Achievements/Trophies[]

The player can earn two Achievements/Trophies associated with the Wanted Level, however the use of specific Cheat Codes blocks the rewards.

  • Walk Free - Successfully evade a four-star Wanted Level. (50G/Bronze Trophy)
  • One Man Army - Survive a six-star Wanted Level for five minutes. (40G/Silver Trophy)

Oversights[]

  • With a Wanted Level, any nearby helicopter will chase the player, including the Helitours Mavericks, other civilian Mavericks, or even an Annihilator. Fortunately, the civilian Mavericks have no riflemen on-board to fire upon the player, but the pilots will shout the same warnings and threats usually heard from the Police Mavericks. This is strange because normally when helicopters fly and the player has a wanted level, they ignore the player.
  • If the player buys food or drinks, the police will temporarily cease fire while the player is consuming their meal; they will, however, resume attacking immediately afterwards.
  • If the protagonist is drunk and on foot with a one star Wanted Level, the Police Officers will follow him around, pointing their guns at him until he sobers up. However, the player will most likely get two stars if the Police Officers follow the player for too long.
  • If a Police Officer commandeers a vehicle in the player's parking space and the player uses the "wanted down" cheat code, stealing the car back from the police officer doesn't earn the player a wanted rating. Likewise, if the police are arresting a person and commandeers one of the player's vehicles, they can take it back as if the police officer had stolen the car.
  • If the player spawns an FIB Buffalo via the Cheat Code 227-555-0100, it increases the likelihood of FIB Agents appearing.
  • If the player shoots down a Police Maverick or an Annihilator and the wanted level is dropped, sometimes the burnt out wreck of helicopter remains with a police officer slumped over the controls inside, and upon ramming the wreck with a vehicle, the player weirdly attains one star, typically normal if a player rams into a police car, though this glitch happens very rarely.
  • If a Police Officer arrests a Pedestrian, the police will guide them to the closest police vehicle. If the player was inside a police car, the arrested pedestrian and the police officer will enter the car in the back seat. After a few seconds, the player will get a one star wanted level and the pedestrian will jack the player out.
  • If a police officer steals a Taxi and the wanted level is dropped, he will "take" the place of the taxi driver, for example, he can drive the player to an area like a normal taxi driver can. However, the police officer will chase the player if he has a one star Wanted level or will try to kill the player if his wanted level is higher.
  • If the player has a two star Wanted Level and passes through the toll booths on either the East Borough Bridge or the Dukes Bay Bridge (without paying), sometimes their Wanted Level will sometimes go down to one-star, just like when the player drives past a toll booth without paying.
  • If the player has not yet unlocked the island of Alderney (but has unlocked Algonquin), and travels down an alleyway on Union Drive West, between the building with a Sprunk sign on it and Ray Boccino's lock up (there's a sign above that says Cogs and Hogs Auto Electric), jumps over the ledge overlooking Booth Tunnel on to an old railway, and then jumps down onto the roadway of Booth Tunnel (which is supposed to be blocked off), he will not obtain a six star wanted level rating (typically normal if a player attempts to access a locked island). Instead, the barricades that should be blocking Alderney now block the island of Algonquin and now the police officers faces the Booth Tunnel. When the player attempts to return to the island of Algonquin by passing the barricades, he will obtain an automatic six star Wanted Level as if he was attempting to access an island that has not yet been unlocked. Effectively, the only way to continue the game without getting in trouble is to hail a Taxi in Booth Tunnel an have the driver take the player to another location (Note: It is recommended to skip to the destination as the driver will repeatedly crash into the barricades and the player will not get anywhere). Adventurous players and those who like to be troublemakers could simply pass through the barricades and incur the six star Wanted Level.
  • If the player throws a passenger out of a Taxi and is in sight of a Police Officer, they will not obtain a Wanted Level rating as they do when they hijacks someone from a regular vehicle in sight of a police officer.
  • If AI helpers armed with firearms are following the player and a one-star wanted level is obtained, the Police will shoot at the player and the AI even if just standing there, after shooting you a couple of times, they will try to make an arrest on the player.
  • Sometimes, if the player shoots a firearm near a police officer and gains a two-star Wanted Level, the police dispatch will say "we have a firearm attack on an officer." This is a glitch, however, since this would normally warrant a three-star Wanted Level.

Trivia[]

  • If a Police Officer jacks a civilian car or breaks into one, he will still give orders over a megaphone while pursuing the player as if he were in a regular Police Patrol car.
    • When a Police Officer is driving a civilian vehicle, the radar will not display their position. However, if they drive the police cars that is exclusive in multiplayer (spawned via trainer or in Free Mode with "Police" on), they will show.
  • If a Police Officer commandeers a Mr. Tasty, they will play the van's jingles as if they were the siren.
  • If a Police Officer dies via shooting to death at the same time the police vehicle, he commandeers gets close to the player, the police megaphone will still function.
  • If the wanted level is 3 stars or higher, spawning Law Enforcement Vehicles will always have more tire grip than normal, it has the purpose of making the pursuit harder for the player, to compensate the poor driving AI. One can easily notice the high level of grip if he/she manages to steal an FIB Buffalo, lose the cops (Cheat is faster), drive it for a while, and then spawn a normal FIB Buffalo with the 227-555-0100 cheat.
  • It possible to crash the police officer out the car by crashing head-on at high speed. There is a better chance of doing this if the player has a large vehicle, such as a truck.
  • If an officer was to arrest the player while in two-star wanted level or higher, other officers already in the pursuit (and in a police car) will try to block the player's way.
  • The lower wanted level cheat will not work if the player enters an island that has yet to be unlocked in the storyline or trespasses in the tarmac of the Francis International Airport. It shares this trait with GTA Vice City if the player trespasses in the Washington Beach Police Station (unless if Tommy Vercetti is wearing the police uniform), GTA San Andreas if the player enters San Fierro or Las Venturas if either city has yet to be unlocked (though GTA San Andreas has a cheat code for not earning wanted levels) and GTA V if the player trespasses in the Humane Labs and Research, Fort Zancudo and the Los Santos International Airport (Michael and Franklin will not earn a wanted level when they buy a hangar in LSIA, but Trevor will always earn a wanted level when he enters the airport since he can't buy a hangar there).
  • If the police scanner does not recognize the vehicle's manufacturer and name, only color and type (2-door, van, etc.) is heard instead. An exception is the NRG 900 (Possibly because it is the only sports bike).
  • If a police officer is killed by hitting him with a car or bike without being wanted, the player may only gain a single star wanted level.
  • When a player has a wanted level and if one looks closely, Niko moves his eyes from left to right and his expression shows, that he is either scared or is looking out for cops.
  • Sometimes after evading a wanted level of at least five stars, the United Liberty Paper Contact will call and scold Niko Bellic (only happens after the mission Wrong is Right).
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