Explainer
The police chase witnesses, not crimes
The six-star ceiling got the headlines. The change that will actually alter how you play is that the police now hold specific information about you, and you can take it away from them.
Short answer
How does the GTA 6 wanted system work?
Police are alerted only when someone witnesses a crime. What they then know about you shows as evidence icons under the star meter — your face, your clothing, or your vehicle — and each clears differently: a barber, a full outfit change, or a different car. Outlined stars mean they know a crime happened but have no description. Escaping does not end it: the scene stays an active investigation while officers search.
The three things the police can know
This is the centrepiece, and it has no precedent in the series. Symbols beneath the star meter tell you exactly which pieces of information law enforcement holds.
| Police know | How it happened | How to clear it |
|---|---|---|
| Your face | A witness or a camera got a clear look at you. | Visit a barber. Changing your hair clears the physical description. |
| Your clothing | A witness described what you were wearing. | A complete outfit change. A hat or glasses is not enough. |
| Your vehicle | The getaway car was identified. | Swap vehicles. This reduces how effectively they can search. |
Masks remove the hardest description before it is ever taken
ConfirmedWearing a mask during the offence and discarding it during the getaway hides your face from cameras. Face coverings live in their own item wheel, separate from weapons.
Outlined stars are a different situation entirely
Outlined rather than filled means no visual description
ConfirmedThe police know a crime occurred but cannot identify who committed it. That is materially different from being actively identified, and the HUD tells you which one you are in rather than making you guess.
Practically: outlined stars are survivable by behaving normally. Filled stars mean something specific is being broadcast about you, and behaving normally will not help until you change it.
Getting away is the start of the problem, not the end
The scene remains an active police zone
ConfirmedOfficers search the area before calling the investigation off, and they can surround a location and simply wait outside rather than forcing entry. Holing up is a much worse plan than it was in GTA V.
Someone sees it
No witness, no wanted level. A witness passes on whatever they could actually make out.
Units arrive with a description
What they are looking for is exactly what the witness gave them, shown to you as evidence icons.
The search cone widens
By three stars in Vice City the response coordinates rather than follows. Air support joins at four.
The investigation continues
Breaking line of sight does not clear it. The area stays active while officers search.
You change what they know
Barber, outfit, vehicle. Remove the description and the investigation goes cold.
Sources
Every claim on this page traces back to one of the following. Rockstar Games newswire posts and the official Extended Look are treated as primary; everything else is labelled in-line.