There's plenty of things to like about Rockstar's magnum opus, Grand Theft Auto V, but there's also a few things that get everyone's goat because of how nonsensical and unfun they are in their implementation within the game.
Among one of the biggest issues with the game's witness system, which reports crimes to the police when players commit them, is the fact that the system is rigged against the player. As soon as a player witnesses a crime, they do not have to dial 9-1-1 to get a police response.
As a matter of fact, simply witnessing the crime is enough to automatically trigger a wanted level. What's curious about this implementation is that the game is capable of having an actual witness and report system that requires pedestrians to call the police before you get a wanted level, but it's simply unused.
Additionally, pedestrians aren't the only ones capable of summoning law enforcement down upon you. Wild animals and domesticated pets alike are also coded to call law enforcement down on players. This is pretty dumb.
If you kill a lonely hiker atop Mount Chiliad and an animal witnesses you doing it, you're going to get a wanted level.
A mod titled "Crime and Police Rebalance & Enhancement" has been created to fix all of this and allow players the use of stealth while committing crimes. Of course, this barely scratches the surface of what's wrong with the game's wanted system, but the mod prevents cops from exhibiting extra-sensorial perception—among many other things. They aren't supposed to be psychic.
In addition to fixing the issues listed, the mod also overhauls enemy AI to be a lot less accurate and skillful, making for more realistic gun battles. Stealth in general has been improved, so silencers work, and pedestrians won't have superhuman hearing. There are also a number of overhauls to the game's police chase system.
Grab the mod here.
Keep in mind that the mod only works in the single-player portion of the game.
