Radar

For the arrows used in early top-down perspective GTA games, see location compass.
For the directions system in Grand Theft Auto IV, see GPS.

The Radar (technically a GPS), is a map on the Heads-up Display showing the player's current location in the game, and the relative location or direction of various points of interest.

Description

Introduced in Grand Theft Auto III, the radar essentially replaces the player centered location compass used in preceding GTA games, and remains an element of all GTA games after.

Blips on the radar show the location of various points of interest such as:

Mission targets. Initially indicated only by colored squares in GTA III, radars from GTA Vice City onwards specifically use squares for targets on the same physical level (altitude) as the player, and a triangle pointed upwards if the target is above or a downwards triangle if it is below. In GTA IV, the radar uses colored circles; if the target is higher or lower, there will be a small arrow inside the circle.
Landmarks, such as spray shops, Ammu-Nation, clothing stores and places where the player can purchase food.
Location of characters who can give missions to the protagonists.
Savepoints and safehouses.
Gang colors or territory (GTA San Andreas).
Custom way points (GTA San Andreas onwards)

From GTA VI onwards, the Health and Armor indicators, which were initially located near to the weapon icon, game clock and money counter, are integrated into the radar, warping around the radar's circular border; the health bar and armor bar each take up half of the radar's circumference, and the health bar will become red and blink if the player's health is low. In addition, the radar from GTA IV onwards also indicates the extent in which law enforcement scouts for the player whenever they have a wanted level.

In GTA IV, the armor is the green semicircle around the radar, the armor is the blue semicircle around the radar. In The Ballad of Gay Tony, the health bar is a white semicircle while the armor bar is the purple semicircle.

Gallery

GTA III — GTA Vice City Stories

GTA III (PC version. In the PS2 version, the safe house marker's is originally green).
GTA Vice City.
GTA San Andreas.
GTA Advance.
GTA Liberty City Stories.
GTA Vice City Stories.

GTA IV — GTA Chinatown Wars

GTA IV; the green bar denotes the player's health and the blue bar denotes the player's armor (Wanted level radar).

GTA IV; the green bar denotes the player's health and the blue bar denotes the player's armor (Wanted level radar).
The Lost and Damned; the white bar denotes the player's health and the red bar denotes the player's armor.
The Ballad of Gay Tony; the white bar denotes the player's health and the purple bar denotes the player's armor.
GTA Chinatown Wars (DS version), having been integrated into its HUD.
GTA Chinatown Wars (PSP version), being closer in design to the GTA IV version (Wanted level radar).