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Finish any one GTA V finale, then open Pause Menu > Game > Replay Mission and scroll to the bottom of the completed-mission list. You will find Something Sensible, The Time’s Come, and The Third Way. Replay lets you watch and score the other outcomes without changing the ending stored in your active save. To make a different choice permanent, load a save from before Franklin’s decision or start a new game.
Spoiler warning: The rest of this guide names all three endings and explains which protagonists remain alive in each branch.
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What happens when you replay GTA V’s finale?
GTA V separates a mission replay from the story timeline in your save file. Once one finale has been completed, the game adds all three finale missions to the Replay Mission list. Selecting an unchosen finale starts that mission in a separate replay context. You can experience its scenes, objectives, outcome and medal requirements, but the replay does not rewrite the branch that your Story Mode save already committed.
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For example, if your save chose the ending that removes Trevor, replaying The Third Way lets you see the survival ending, but Trevor does not return to that save afterward. Likewise, replaying Something Sensible does not permanently remove Trevor from a save that originally selected The Third Way.
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That distinction answers the most important question: you can see all three endings without restarting immediately, but you cannot turn a replay into a permanent alternate timeline.
The three GTA V ending missions
Franklin receives three options at the final decision. Each option launches a different finale mission and leaves a different persistent world in the completed save.
| Choice | Finale mission | Persistent result in that save | Story outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kill Trevor | Something Sensible | Trevor is removed from the saved story. | Franklin acts against Trevor. |
| Kill Michael | The Time’s Come | Michael is removed from the saved story. | Franklin acts against Michael. |
| Attempt to save both | The Third Way (also called Deathwish) | Michael, Franklin and Trevor remain available. | The three protagonists confront their enemies together. |
The third option is the only branch that keeps all three protagonists available for continued play in the active save. The other two choices permanently remove the named character from that save’s post-finale world.
How to unlock the replay list
You do not need to complete all three branches to unlock the list. Completing any one finale in normal Story Mode is enough. The game then records the completed finale and exposes the three ending missions through Mission Replay.
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- Play through the final choice in Story Mode and select one of Franklin’s three options.
- Finish the selected finale completely. Allow the mission to reach its completion state and continue through the credits sequence rather than quitting partway through.
- Return to free roam or open the pause screen after the finale has completed.
- Open the Game section of the pause menu.
- Select Replay Mission.
- Scroll to the bottom of the completed-mission list. The finale entries are grouped there as Something Sensible, The Time’s Come, and The Third Way.
- Select either of the endings you did not choose in the original playthrough. Repeat the selection for the remaining finale when you want to see the third outcome.
Menu wording can vary slightly between GTA V releases, but the route is consistently the Game menu followed by Replay Mission. If the endings are absent, first confirm that the finale itself has been completed and that you are looking at the bottom of the mission list rather than the first entries.
What you can do during Mission Replay
Watch the alternate story outcome
Mission Replay allows you to play a finale you did not commit to your save. This is the practical way to compare the three narrative outcomes after one completed playthrough: select each listed ending, play it, and return to the replay list for the next one.
Work toward the mission medal
The replay context can also be used to pursue that finale’s medal requirements. Any score or medal attempt belongs to the replayed mission rather than changing the story branch of your save.
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Leave the replay without changing the timeline
When the replay ends, resume Story Mode. The active save remains on the branch selected at the original Franklin decision. Replaying a mission is therefore safe for viewing the other outcomes, provided you understand that it is not a branch-selection tool.
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What Mission Replay does not change
- It does not rewrite the ending recorded by the active save.
- It does not duplicate or alter the finale payout in your Story Mode timeline.
- It does not restore a protagonist removed by the ending stored in that save.
- It does not remove a protagonist from a save that originally chose The Third Way.
- It does not convert a replayed branch into the permanent post-game world.
Think of replay as a selectable performance of a completed mission, not as a second save slot. The game can show you the other result while preserving the consequences of the choice you actually made.
How to change the ending permanently
A permanent change requires playing the final decision in a save that has not yet passed it. The safest method is to create a separate manual save before Franklin receives the three choices.
- Load the manual save made before the final choice.
- Play forward until Franklin is offered the three options.
- Select the different branch you want to keep.
- Complete that finale in normal Story Mode.
- Save the result in a separate slot so the original branch remains available.
After this process, the newly selected branch becomes the persistent story state of that save. The previous save slot still contains its own branch if you kept it separate.
If you have no pre-choice save
Mission Replay cannot substitute for an earlier save. If no manual or other usable save exists from before the decision, a new playthrough is required to make another branch permanent. You can still use Replay Mission to view the other endings immediately, but only a pre-choice save or a new game can commit one of them to the story timeline.
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Choosing a branch for your permanent save
The best choice depends on the post-game roster you want, not on which replay you plan to watch. Use the following decision guide before confirming Franklin’s option.
- Choose Something Sensible if you want the save whose permanent outcome removes Trevor.
- Choose The Time’s Come if you want the save whose permanent outcome removes Michael.
- Choose The Third Way (Deathwish) if keeping Michael, Franklin and Trevor available is your priority.
Because the first two branches remove one protagonist from that saved world, players who want the broadest set of playable characters generally preserve a pre-choice save before deciding. That lets you keep access to an earlier decision point while still using Mission Replay to view the alternatives.
A safe save-management workflow
Use this sequence if you want every option available without accidentally overwriting your preferred branch.
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- Before the final choice, make a manual save in a clearly labeled slot.
- Complete one ending and save the completed story in a different slot.
- Open Game > Replay Mission to view the two unselected finales.
- Keep the pre-choice slot untouched if you may later commit a different ending.
- If you decide to commit another branch, load the pre-choice slot, complete the alternate finale, and save it to a third slot.
This arrangement separates three states: the decision point, the first permanent ending and any later permanent ending. It also prevents an accidental overwrite from deleting the only save that can reach the choice again without a full new game.
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Troubleshooting the ending replay
The finale missions are not visible
- Confirm that the original finale was completed, not merely started.
- Return to the pause menu after the credits sequence or after entering free roam.
- Open the Game menu and choose Replay Mission; do not look only in the general mission history.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list, where the three finale entries appear.
You can see only one ending
The replay list is not limited to the ending you selected. Once a finale has been completed, the three named finale missions are listed together. If the list appears incomplete, leave the menu, confirm the finale completion state, and reopen Mission Replay after returning to Story Mode.
The replayed character is still missing afterward
That is expected when the active save chose a branch that removes Michael or Trevor. Replay displays the alternate mission but does not restore a protagonist removed by the saved ending. To keep that character in the persistent world, load a pre-choice save and select The Third Way, or begin a new game and choose it there.
A character disappeared after replaying an ending
Mission Replay itself does not commit the replayed branch. Resume Story Mode and check the original save state. If the active save previously retained all three protagonists, replaying Something Sensible or The Time’s Come should not permanently remove anyone from that save.
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There is no permanent-branch undo inside Mission Replay. Load a manual save from before the decision and select the desired option. Without such a save, the permanent alternative requires a new playthrough.
Replay versus a new playthrough
| Goal | Use Mission Replay | Use a pre-choice save or new game |
|---|---|---|
| See an ending you did not choose | Yes. Select the finale from the bottom of the replay list. | Not necessary. |
| Try for a finale medal | Yes. The replay supports the mission’s medal attempt. | Not necessary unless you also want the branch saved permanently. |
| Change which protagonist survives in the active save | No. Replay does not rewrite the timeline. | Yes. Make the alternate choice before the finale is committed. |
| Keep all three protagonists available after the finale | No. Viewing The Third Way does not alter another branch. | Yes. Commit The Third Way in the save you intend to continue. |
The choice between these methods is therefore about permanence. Replay is faster when your goal is to see content; a separate save or new game is required when your goal is to live with a different post-game roster.
Quick checklist
- Complete one GTA V finale in Story Mode.
- Reach the post-finale state and open the pause menu.
- Go to Game > Replay Mission.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list.
- Play Something Sensible, The Time’s Come and The Third Way as needed.
- Remember that replay viewing and medal attempts do not rewrite your save.
- For a permanent change, load a save from before Franklin’s decision or start a new game.
The practical result is simple: one completed finale unlocks all three for replay, while only a pre-choice save or a fresh playthrough can make a different ending the permanent state of your story.
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