Grand Theft Auto: GTA 5's Three Ending Choice Differences Explained

screenrant.com:

's single-player campaign seems fairly straightforward, but the three ending possibilities are anything but. gives players control over how the story will reach its dramatic conclusion, with a choice of three very different options. Protagonist Franklin Clinton must decide between killing Michael De Santa, killing Trevor Philips, or teaming up with both. While there is a true ending to the game, there is no right or wrong answer for players other than leaving things in a way that they feel confident about the choice they made.

[Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Grand Theft Auto 5.]

Before reaching the concluding decision, 's protagonists rob the Union Depository Bank of $200 million in "." Franklin goes home to cool down after the heist, where antagonists Steve Haines and Devin Weston approach him, ordering him to kill one of his comrades. Haines wishes Trevor dead because of his unpredictability, which makes him a liability. Meanwhile, Weston failed to have Michael's family killed as revenge for the accidental death of his lawyer, so he enlists Franklin to finish the deed. Franklin's third hidden option is to ignore the antagonists, enlisting Michael and Trevor's help to take down Haines, Weston, and several other enemies.

If a player chooses to ignore Trevor's redeeming qualities and act on Haines' request in 's ending, Franklin arranges a meeting with Trevor. They begin discussing recent events, and Franklin (perhaps looking to justify his choice to carry out Haines' wishes) says Trevor's wildness will get him and Michael killed. He then proceeds to pull a gun on Trevor, but Trevor manages to escape in his truck. Michael arrives to help during the chase, ramming Trevor's truck into an oil tank.

Trevor is injured in the crash, but still alive, and falls out of the truck and into the spilling oil while berating Franklin and Michael for their betrayal. At that point, either Franklin or Michael shoots at Trevor and ignites the spilled oil around