GTA VI brings back six wanted levels and adds a separate Criminal Profile

The HUD in Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look shows six wanted positions, one more than GTA V's maximum. The frame appears at about 14:15 in Rockstar's official video, with four stars lit and two left dark.

Official Rockstar Games frame from An Extended Look, approximately at 14:15. The HUD shows six positions and four lower indicators, but the image does not identify what those icons do.

That is enough to say GTA VI has a six-level wanted scale. It is not enough to say which units appear at the sixth star, how long it takes to reach or whether it works like the system in earlier games.

A separate system for Jason and Lucia

During a playable demonstration at Rockstar North, IGN observed that Jason and Lucia have a Criminal Profile apart from their wanted level. It changes with the way they behave in the world.

The demo separated returning fire during a shootout or defending against an aggressor from deliberately escalating a situation that could have ended without violence. Rockstar North co-head Rob Nelson said there is no right or wrong way to play. Consistent behaviour can still affect how the world reacts and how the story develops.

The examples were not limited to gunfights. Throwing rubbish into a bin appeared to change the profile, and Nelson mentioned feeding animals as another possibility. The nearest comparison is Red Dead Redemption 2's honour system, but this is not a simple good-versus-bad meter. It looks at the context around the actions of two criminals.

TGG's account is still a report

On September 1, 2026, creator TGG published a video about the Criminal Profile after previewing an early version of GTA VI. According to his account, Rob Nelson described four states: Professional, Aggressive, Violent and Psycho. TGG also described a lower state whose icon can crack until it becomes "shattered" after enough serious actions.

That information needs a clear label. TGG said he did not have Nelson's exact quote and asked viewers to treat the explanation cautiously. The names and the "shattered" state are therefore an attributed report, not an official Rockstar list. The video does not prove that the states map one-to-one to the four red circles in the HUD, or that the system is final before launch.

On September 3, 2026 at 02:37 UTC, the verified Complex Pop Instagram account repeated the same report in a carousel. It credits TGG and Rockstar for the images, but the post does not turn the reconstruction into an official confirmation. A Complex article published on September 2 also discusses similarities with Red Dead Redemption 2, but it is not a separate Rockstar announcement.

The lower icons and the chase

Four red circles with different symbols sit beneath the stars. Rockstar and IGN have not identified them as the visual representation of the Criminal Profile. They may relate to detected offences, response categories or another system. The frame cannot establish which.

IGN's demonstration does reveal more about how a pursuit can work. When someone witnesses a crime, police may receive a description of the protagonists' clothing, vehicle and whether Jason and Lucia are together or apart. Changing those details can help during an escape.

Between 17:58 and 18:07, an NPC says "I'm watching you" and then warns that police are on their way. The presentation shows residents reacting, reporting and, depending on the situation, confronting the player instead of always running away.

Official Rockstar Games frame related to the pursuit described by IGN.

Police can search for the couple, which gives Jason and Lucia the option of splitting up to make identification harder. Changing vehicles or clothing, or continuing on foot, is also part of the system described by IGN.

Open questions

Rockstar still has not explained:

• which threat corresponds to each star;
• what changes between levels five and six;
• how long a witness description stays active;
• how players reduce or clear the Criminal Profile;
• what the four lower indicators represent;
• how far the profile can change the story;
• how these rules work during scripted missions.

For now, two facts stand separately: the video shows six wanted positions, and Rockstar confirms a Criminal Profile that tracks behaviour. The four lower icons remain unexplained.

Follow the An Extended Look watch thread and read the updated Jason and Lucia guide.