There has been plenty of discussion as of late about the development of the next installment in the Grand Theft Auto franchise. While players are likely years away from experiencing GTA VI, it is worth noting that the latest iteration is still alive and well.

And while the online mode in Grand Theft Auto V has kept many players busy, the game's main story mode still stands out as one of the best the series has ever seen. One aspect of the main story that stood out was how incredible the story missions were, no matter how simple at times. Here is a look at a few of the best missions in GTA V's single-player mode.

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Updated on February 28, 2021 by Scoot Allan: One of the biggest successes of Rockstar Games' hit entry in the beloved GTA franchise is the inclusion of multiple protagonists. As players are able to control three wildly different characters in Grand Theft Auto V, they also get to experience three well-developed storylines. Those storylines then begin to wind together as the characters meet, leading to some of the best missions of the franchise. Let's take a break from waiting for the highly-anticipated GTA VI to explore a few more of the best story missions you can experience in Los Santos. 

15 Michael And Franklin Meet For The First Time In "Complications"

Most of the early missions of the game revolve around Franklin repoing cars for his boss Simeon Yetarian. This mission asks the player to sneak into a fancy house and drive a yellow SUV out of the garage and back to the dealership.

Part of the way through, however, Michael awakes from the back seat and points a gun at Franklin, telling him to drive the car into the dealership. It's a fun stealth mission, which leads to cutting ties with an annoying boss. The player even gets to beat up Simeon as Michael.

14 "Marriage Counseling" Saw Michael And Franklin Literally Pull Down A House

This mission starts out with Michael finding his wife cheating on him with a tennis coach. The mission involves him and Franklin chasing the tennis coach to a house on the side of the cliff. The insane aspect of this mission is that Michael literally destroys the house by hooking the foundation and pulling it down.

This leads to a chase where Franklin needs to avoid gangs that are shooting at them. Michael and Franklin learn later that they destroyed the house of Cartel leader Martin Madrazo's mistress, which sets off a whole new chain of events.

13 You Can Land A Plane Inside Another Plane In "Minor Turbulence"

There are quite a few flying missions available in GTA V, especially if players buy the McKenzie Field Hangar to run smuggling missions. These are all possible due to Trevor Philip's experience as a pilot, though he was discharged from the army before receiving his license.

"Minor Turbulence" sees Trevor flying a small jet to intercept a large Merryweather cargo plane while also avoiding radar. Not only do you get to land a plane inside of another plane, but you can also ride a jeep out of the crashing plane Fast And Furious-style, further elevating the solo mission.

12 Trevor Goes To War With The O'Neil Brothers In "Crystal Maze"

Through the first few missions with Trevor, it's easy to see how he's a lot more impulsive, and has a lot more people after him, than Franklin and Michael. This is seen in Crystal Maze as he goes after the O'Neil brothers. After the family steals Trevor's business, he decides that he's going to take out every last one of them.

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This is a typical shootout mission where players must kill all the targets after them. The cherry on top, though, is being able to blow up their house at the very end in a dramatic fashion.

11 "I Fought The Law..." Features High-Speed Races And Hilarious Fake Cops

Franklin's special driving ability comes in handy during the "I Fought The Law..." mission as players are forced to race a couple of supercars that have been targeted by Devin Weston, one of GTA V's main antagonists.

However, players also get the chance to play as Michael and Trevor, who are hilariously posing as fake motorcycle cops in order to pull over the speeding supercars. Both angles to the mission offer different ways to enjoy the three main characters while taking part in a high-speed chase on the freeway that is instantly memorable.

10 Michael And Trevor Team Up To Take Down A Plane In "Caida Libre"

The "Caida Libre" mission is one of the many jobs to come from Mexican Cartel leader Martin Madrazo. He enlists Michael and Trevor to help him take out his cousin Javier, who is flying into Los Santos to testify against Madrazo.

Players get the chance to first shoot Javier's incoming plane out of the sky using a high-powered mounted sniper rifle. The mission only gets better when it switches to Trevor, who hastily follows the crashing jet on a dirtbike to finish the job, which includes an amazing in-mission jump.

9 "Three's Company" Is The First Mission That Unites All Three Protagonists

This is the first mission that involves all three playable characters in the main storyline. The mission is to help the FIB steal Ferdinand Kerimov, an individual the FIB presumed was dead but turns out is alive and is being interrogated by the IAA.

This mission is a blast because each character serves a different role in the mission and the player gets to experience each of them. Trevor flies the helicopter while Michael rappels down to kidnap Kerimov. Meanwhile, Franklin is on standby for back-up with a sniper rifle.

8 Michael And Trevor Fight In A War Between The FIB, IAA, And Merryweather In "The Wrap-Up"

There are a number of different organizations at play in GTA V that get involved in the affairs of Michael, Trevor, and Franklin. "The Wrap-Up" sees these various factions ignite in a violent, action-packed war that finds Michael caught in the middle.

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As players are forced to escape the Kortz Center museum, they get the chance to play as both Michael and Trevor at a unique point in their relationship. The dual-perspective mission gives both sniper and duck-and-cover shooters ample opportunities amidst the chaos that includes an air-to-ground battle with a helicopter.

7 The Crew Is Involved In A Shootout Of Major Proportions In "Blitz Play"

In another FIB mission, the three protagonists are tasked to rob an armored truck filled with funds for the IAA. Michael decides to go with a blitz play approach, where they block the path for the armored vehicle with a garbage truck right before it pulls up.

Then, while it's parked, they ram the car with a tow truck to destroy the vehicle and collect the money. If the player is successful with this, they then will need to deal with a shoot-out of major proportions. The joy of it is being able to choose which character to use during the fight, occasionally switching to a character in need of help.

6 *"Lamar Down" Highlights The Benefits Of Strategically Working With A Team

Lamar Davis is one of the best characters in GTA V who first appears as a long-time friend of Franklin's before he also befriends Trevor. However, after Lamar was betrayed and taken captive by the Ballas gang, all three crew members teamed up to assault the gang's sawmill hideout in the "Lamar Down" mission.

Michael, Trevor, and Franklin launch a three-way attack on the sawmill that gives players the opportunity to strategically take out the Ballas and rescue Lamar. "Lamar Down" is fun to play repeatedly because it is one of the best-developed non-heist missions in the game.

5 "The Jewel Score" Is One Of The Most Authentic Feeling Heists In GTA V

This heist gives players the first taste of what heists are like in the game, including preparing for the heists in mini-missions and choosing their crew. This is one of the many heists in the game that give players multiple options on how to approach it.

Michael and Franklin can rob the jewelry store by either posing as a fumigation company after they knock everyone out with sleeping gas ("Smart" approach) or by approaching it head-on as an old-fashion stick-up robbery ("Loud" approach). Regardless, be prepared to drive away quickly from the cops.

4 Michael And Franklin Assualt The FIB Building In "The Bureau Raid"

Steve Haines, the arrogant FIB agent Michael has been doing jobs for, asks the main characters to steal any record of Haines' crimes from the FIB building. This is one of the later heists in the game, but one that also only includes Michael and Franklin (Trevor isn't present as he is angry at Michael). This one also has two options.

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For "Covert," Michael poses as a janitor and rigs the FIB with bombs. After they explode, they infiltrate as firemen to get the files. "Roof" has all of them take a helicopter to the top of the FIB building, parachute down, and steal the files from the top.

3 "The Paleto Score" Is One Of The Most Insane Missions In The Game

It is likely that this is the most insane mission in the entire game. It seems small, as Michael, Franklin, and Trevor are looking to just rob a bank in Paleto Bay. However, this bank has over $8 million in its vaults and there are plenty of cops that are willing to take anyone out who tries to steal it.

This is why they are tasked with getting heavy military-grade armor and weapons. In order to escape with the cash, players will need to hold off the cops and the local army, needing to deal with tanks coming right at them. It is high-action the entire time, so don't expect to stop and breathe from the moment the robbery starts.

2 "The Big Score" Features Both Stealthy And High-Action Options

Michael and Trevor have always dreamed of pulling off the big one: robbing the Union Depository. Along with Franklin, they get to execute the job. There are two drastically different approaches. One involves being subtle, posing as individuals who are in charge of driving around the gold bars and pretending to just be doing another load.

Then there's obvious, which involves a fake hold-up in the front of the Union Depository while a drill underground breaks through the walls and grabs the gold. The heist is stealthy at first but becomes high-action as the police find out what's happening. If players are successful, they are set for life.

1 "The Third Way" Is The Best Way To Finish Off The Campaign

Players have a choice on how they want the game to end, with Franklin being asked to kill either Michael or Trevor. But the best and most canonical choice is picking the third way. The three of them team up to take out many of the adversaries that have tortured them throughout the game.

It starts with a shoot-out with the FIB and Merryweather and ends with each character taking out one person at a time individually. When it's all said and done, they all work together to end the life of one more individual who has been a pain in the butt since he came into their lives. All in all, it's a satisfying way for one of the best games of the last decade to end.

NEXT: Grand Theft Auto V: 10 Secret Side Quests Everyone Missed