If this theory holds true then maybe if Noct sacrificing himself is the neutral ending Episode Noctis will give us the other two endings they originally thought about including where he goes rogue. He either brings ruin to all things around him by getting ahead of himself and becomes the new Ardyn or he finds a way to utilize the crystal in such a manner that he can give everyone the ending they desire (Episode Ignis opened up this possibility in Verse 2 when Noct overturned a sacrifice of the ring by pleading to the crystal). I'm starting to think maybe the original ending wasn't the only way to bring peace, it was just the only 100% guaranteed method of success with other methods being really big gambles that could potentially cause Noctis to die without fulfilling his calling or to become corrupted hence why Noctis is lead down a very strict path in the original story because the Astrals can't afford to give him freedom like they did to Ardyn.
If the recapitulation of the opening scene was drawn from the initial concept for a "be a normal person" ending, that in and of itself might suggest the reason why the Astrals wouldn't consider that an option.
Merely resetting time wouldn't provide the means to eliminate the Scourge or deal with the threat posed by the Empire. But here's what might: using the Crystal to rewrite time such that neither the Scourge nor the Crystal are in play. That's one of the few scenarios that could result in a world where Noct and Luna could get married without incident, and Uncle Ardyn could casually hang out with them and their kids.
It would also plausibly have the consequence of removing the magical/divine influence from the world, which would obviously be something the Astrals would want to avoid.
The new choices, then, could be as follows:
1) "Be a king" -- the canon path, and probably also the shortest in the DLC. Noct sacrifices himself, and he and Luna serve as new divine guardians of the world and the Crystal's light.
2) "Be a normal person" -- the "alternate grand finale," where Noct finds a way to reverse time and allow everyone to live as non-magical humans but severs the world's connection to divinity in the process.
3) "Be a god" -- the "super bad" ending, where Noct is corrupted. This would also provide an excuse to include Luna (a la Omen), Shiva, Ramuh, and/or Bahamut (a la his most over-the-top Comrades battle) as a massive boss rush.
