Wanted Meter: Difference between revisions

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** ''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'' changed up the system a bit. The progressive levels of law enforcement stayed, but rather than being omni-present they created a radius on the map. If you were within that radius you had to get out. Every time you were spotted the radius centered on you. Once you managed to escape it you had to stay out of sight until it shrunk into nothing. Each level of law enforcement brings a larger radius.
** ''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'' changed up the system a bit. The progressive levels of law enforcement stayed, but rather than being omni-present they created a radius on the map. If you were within that radius you had to get out. Every time you were spotted the radius centered on you. Once you managed to escape it you had to stay out of sight until it shrunk into nothing. Each level of law enforcement brings a larger radius.
** ''[[Red Dead Redemption]]'' shakes it up even more. The radius from GTA IV returns, but there is a finite amount of police officers so you can choose to either run away or kill them all. The advantage of running away is it doesn't increase your bounty like killing a few dozen cops does. The individual wanted levels are replaced by an ongoing bounty. Different crimes have different costs associated with them and the more crimes you do the higher the bounty gets. The higher the bounty is the harder the law (and bounty hunters) will come after you. Simply escaping or killing all of the cops doesn't erase your bounty. You have to either pay it off yourself, turn yourself in or do a job for the law. The overall effect is a more dynamic and realistic system than in either GTA.
** ''[[Red Dead Redemption]]'' shakes it up even more. The radius from GTA IV returns, but there is a finite amount of police officers so you can choose to either run away or kill them all. The advantage of running away is it doesn't increase your bounty like killing a few dozen cops does. The individual wanted levels are replaced by an ongoing bounty. Different crimes have different costs associated with them and the more crimes you do the higher the bounty gets. The higher the bounty is the harder the law (and bounty hunters) will come after you. Simply escaping or killing all of the cops doesn't erase your bounty. You have to either pay it off yourself, turn yourself in or do a job for the law. The overall effect is a more dynamic and realistic system than in either GTA.
* ''[[Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines]]'' had two Wanted Meters. One represented the [[Masquerade]], the secrecy of the vampire world. Violating The Masquerade caused vampire hunters equipped with stakes and torches to come after you. If you lost all your masquerade points you were executed by the sheriff. The other was a typical [[Wanted Meter]] that represented the police.
* ''[[Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines]]'' had two Wanted Meters. One represented the [[Masquerade]], the secrecy of the vampire world. Violating The Masquerade caused vampire hunters equipped with stakes and torches to come after you. If you lost all your masquerade points you were executed by the sheriff. The other was a typical '''Wanted Meter''' that represented the police.
* ''[[Bully (video game)|Bully]]'' had this. In addition to the usual crimes, hitting anything not a teenage boy ([[Double Standard|girls]], little kids, adults, prefects) would instantly max out the meter and prompt some of the law enforcement to spawn [[Behind the Black]]. If the meter was more than 2/3 full, officials who caught you would skip the usual [[Smashing Survival]] and instantly bust you; a good incentive to confine your violence to fellow delinquents... unless you wanted [[100% Completion]], which required you to serve a certain number of detentions to earn an outfit.
* ''[[Bully (video game)|Bully]]'' had this. In addition to the usual crimes, hitting anything not a teenage boy ([[Double Standard|girls]], little kids, adults, prefects) would instantly max out the meter and prompt some of the law enforcement to spawn [[Behind the Black]]. If the meter was more than 2/3 full, officials who caught you would skip the usual [[Smashing Survival]] and instantly bust you; a good incentive to confine your violence to fellow delinquents... unless you wanted [[100% Completion]], which required you to serve a certain number of detentions to earn an outfit.
* ''[[Destroy All Humans!]]'' had four stages to its meter. The last stage drew the MIB, Majestic -- which was especially dangerous because their presence wrecked your Holobob, making you a sitting duck.
* ''[[Destroy All Humans!]]'' had four stages to its meter. The last stage drew the MIB, Majestic—which was especially dangerous because their presence wrecked your Holobob, making you a sitting duck.
* ''[[Postal (video game series)|Postal]] 2'' had a wanted meter, but the degree of Wantedness didn't have any secondary effect other than how long it took for the meter to "cool down" and things to go back to normal. Authority figures do get tougher later in the game (SWAT teams and soldiers instead of cops), but that's only due to plot progression.
* ''[[Postal (video game series)|Postal]] 2'' had a wanted meter, but the degree of Wantedness didn't have any secondary effect other than how long it took for the meter to "cool down" and things to go back to normal. Authority figures do get tougher later in the game (SWAT teams and soldiers instead of cops), but that's only due to plot progression.
* ''[[Mafia]]'' had a 3-stage wanted meter. For traffic violations, the cops would try to ticket you. For major crimes (fleeing from the police, general mayhem) the cops would try to arrest you. For assault/murder (killing civilians, killing cops, firing a gun) the cops would try to shoot you to death. It also worked so that only the cop seeing you commit the crime would follow you, if either a beat cop or in a car. If you commited a crime in a car and exited it (or the opposite) without the cop seeing you, the police would get confused and you and you could escape. For major crimes like arrested or firing, they would often try to get to a gamewell that made the whole force go after you (otherwise it was just nearby policemen), which would down as you laid low.
* ''[[Mafia]]'' had a 3-stage wanted meter. For traffic violations, the cops would try to ticket you. For major crimes (fleeing from the police, general mayhem) the cops would try to arrest you. For assault/murder (killing civilians, killing cops, firing a gun) the cops would try to shoot you to death. It also worked so that only the cop seeing you commit the crime would follow you, if either a beat cop or in a car. If you commited a crime in a car and exited it (or the opposite) without the cop seeing you, the police would get confused and you and you could escape. For major crimes like arrested or firing, they would often try to get to a gamewell that made the whole force go after you (otherwise it was just nearby policemen), which would down as you laid low.
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