GTA 6 Criminal Profile System Explained
GTA 6 replaces a simple honour bar with a Criminal Profile that tracks how you commit crimes, and it can lock permanently if you push it too far.
Red Dead Redemption 2 had a single honour bar that moved up and down and could always be repaired. GTA 6's version, called the Criminal Profile, is built differently on purpose, and the biggest difference is that it does not always let you take a mistake back.
The four states
According to a hands-on preview at Rockstar North, the system tracks four named states: Professional, Aggressive, Violent and Psycho. Rather than one score for the whole game, Jason and Lucia each carry their own Criminal Profile, so you can play one of them with restraint and the other as a loose cannon in the same save.
What actually moves it
Being Professional does not mean being a good person. You are still robbing stores and stealing cars either way. What changes the profile is control: restraint during a job pushes it toward Professional, while shooting people you did not need to shoot pushes it the other way. It reads intent and method, not a running body count.
Where you see it
An icon in the HUD shows the current state during play, and the full detail sits in a menu tab alongside Jason and Lucia's relationship status. If the notifications bother you, they can be switched off in settings, but that only hides the feedback: the game keeps tracking your actions underneath regardless.
Why it might matter for the story
The preview suggests relationship status and Criminal Profile state can both feed into story outcomes, though Rockstar has not detailed exactly what changes. Treat that as a reason to think about how you want to play Jason and Lucia individually, not as a confirmed branching system.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Criminal Profile the same as the honour system from Red Dead 2?
No. It tracks a similar idea (how you behave as a criminal) but Jason and Lucia have separate profiles, and the bottom state can lock in permanently instead of being recoverable.
Can you turn the Criminal Profile off?
You can turn off the on-screen notifications, but the system still tracks your actions in the background either way.
Does the Criminal Profile affect the story?
It is reported to influence story outcomes alongside the Jason and Lucia relationship system, but Rockstar has not confirmed specifics.
How we reviewed this article
- Written by
- Iris LangeNews and database editor
- Reviewed by
- Marek VosGuides editor
Sources
- TGG, 2026 · Everything We Know About GTA 6 So Far
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