GTA Chinatown Wars cheats: how they work

GTA Chinatown Wars cheats are button sequences on the Nintendo DS and PSP, and spelled words on the safehouse whiteboard on iPhone and Android. They belong to that 2009 handheld game only, and nothing links them to GTA VI.

Chinatown Wars came out on the Nintendo DS in March 2009. A PSP version followed in October 2009, then iOS in January 2010 and Android in December 2014. Rockstar Leeds made it with Rockstar North. The story follows Huang Lee, a young Triad member, through a scaled-down version of the Liberty City from GTA IV, minus Alderney.

This page prints a short list on purpose. We checked every code against two fan reference sites and kept only the ones that matched character by character. Anything that did not match was left out.

How do you enter GTA Chinatown Wars cheats on DS?

On the DS you type the sequence with the buttons while you play. GTABase says players "must simply enter the controller button combination in order." The GTA Place adds that you do this during normal play, without pausing.

These are four DS cheats from Chinatown Wars, written as GTABase and Grand Theft Wiki both print them. Chinatown Wars plays out in the same Liberty City as GTA IV, but these sequences are its own and are not GTA IV codes:

  • Health (Chinatown Wars, DS): L L R A A B B R
  • Full armor (Chinatown Wars, DS): L L R B B A A R
  • Lower wanted level (Chinatown Wars, DS): R X X Y Y R L L
  • Raise wanted level (Chinatown Wars, DS): L L R Y Y X X R

The L and R here are the DS shoulder buttons. A, B, X and Y are the face buttons. GTABase names the first cheat full health and armor, while Grand Theft Wiki calls it health. If you want the console codes from the bigger Liberty City game, our GTA 4 cheats guide covers its phone numbers.

Chinatown Wars cheats on iPhone and Android

The mobile versions drop button sequences. GTABase says codes "can only be entered while at the player's safehouse," where you arrange letters on the whiteboard in the right order. Grand Theft Wiki describes the same whiteboard. The GTA Place calls it the Mission Replay Board, with magnetized letters you drag into place.

These four words match the four DS cheats above. GTABase lists them for iOS and Android, and Grand Theft Wiki lists the same words for iPhone. This is still Chinatown Wars, the game set in the GTA IV version of Liberty City:

  • Health (Chinatown Wars, iOS and Android): LIFEUP
  • Full armor (Chinatown Wars, iOS and Android): SHELLY
  • Lower wanted level (Chinatown Wars, iOS and Android): COPOUT
  • Raise wanted level (Chinatown Wars, iOS and Android): COPIN

The mobile versions also have extra cheats the DS never had, such as time skips and a cash cheat. The reference sites do not agree on the full set. GTABase lists mobile-only cheats that The GTA Place leaves out, and The GTA Place lists one that GTABase does not. We skipped the mobile extras rather than guess which list is complete.

How many cheats are in Chinatown Wars?

GTABase counts 21 different codes across all versions of Chinatown Wars. It lists 16 on the DS, 16 on the PSP and 15 on iOS and Android. The overlap is uneven. Weather cheats exist on DS and PSP but mostly not on mobile, while the time and cash cheats are mobile only.

The rest of the DS list covers four weapon sets, an explosive pistol and a run of weather changes. We kept this page to health, armor and the two wanted level codes. Each one has a matching word on mobile, and each matched across the two lists we compared.

Why are the PSP codes not listed here?

The PSP version of Chinatown Wars has its own sequences using the PlayStation face buttons. We did not print them, because the two lists we checked disagree. GTABase and The GTA Place write the shoulder buttons differently (R against R1), and Grand Theft Wiki prints a different PSP sequence for the lower wanted level cheat than GTABase does.

If you own the PSP version, GTABase has its full PSP list. Check it against a second list before you rely on any one sequence.

Does cheating in Chinatown Wars affect saving?

GTABase states it directly: "Entering a cheat automatically disables Autosave." You can still play, but the game stops saving for you in the background. That is Chinatown Wars behaviour. It tells you nothing about how GTA VI will treat cheats, and Rockstar has said nothing on that. Our guide on whether cheats disable trophies in GTA 6 covers what the older console games did and what is still unknown.

You may also see Action Replay codes for the DS version. Those come from a third-party device, not from Rockstar, and they are not cheats the game shipped with. We do not print them.

Do Chinatown Wars cheats work in GTA VI?

No. Nothing connects these codes to GTA VI. Rockstar has published nothing about cheats in GTA VI, and VI Cheats has not verified a single GTA VI code. Chinatown Wars codes were built for one handheld game in 2009, on hardware GTA VI does not run on. GTA VI is set for November 19, 2026 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S only, according to Rockstar's announcement of November 6, 2025.

For what is actually known about cheats in the new game, see our GTA 6 cheats status page.

VI Cheats is independent and is not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Take-Two Interactive.

Do you have to pause to enter Chinatown Wars cheats on DS?

No. The GTA Place says DS and PSP cheats are entered during normal play without pausing. You press the sequence while you are in control of Huang.

Where is the cheat board in Chinatown Wars on iPhone?

It is the whiteboard inside any safehouse. You drag letters on it to spell a cheat word, such as LIFEUP for the health cheat in Chinatown Wars.

Does using a cheat in Chinatown Wars stop autosave?

Yes, according to GTABase. Entering a cheat in Chinatown Wars disables Autosave.

Are there Chinatown Wars cheats for unlimited money?

The mobile versions list a cash cheat that adds a fixed sum. The DS and PSP lists we checked have no money cheat at all.