University of Tennessee Launches Groundbreaking ‘Grand Theft Auto’ History Class

In a move that signals the growing academic recognition of video games as a legitimate medium for historical and cultural analysis, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville has announced a new college course centered around the Grand Theft Auto series. Titled “Grand Theft America: U.S. History Since 1980 through the GTA Video Games,” the class, set to begin in January 2026, will use Rockstar Games’ satirical open-world franchise as a framework for exploring real American history, politics, and culture. This groundbreaking course is a testament to how far video games have come from being a niche hobby to a mainstream cultural force worthy of serious academic study.

The class, which will be taught by history professor Tore Olsson, has already generated significant buzz across the gaming community and academic circles. Professor Olsson is no stranger to this approach, having previously taught a similar, highly successful course on American history through the lens of Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption series. He emphasizes that the new course is “much more about American history than the games themselves,” with the GTA series serving as a “window for understanding the social, political, economic, and cultural transformations that remade the US since 1980.” This distinction is important, as the class is a genuine history module, not a walkthrough or a lore deep-dive. Students will not be required to own or play the games, as the curriculum will use curated video clips, academic readings, and lectures to prompt discussion.

Course Curriculum: What Will Students Actually Learn?

The course curriculum is designed to use the iconic cities, characters, and satirical elements of the Grand Theft Auto franchise to explore real-world events and trends. Students will analyze how the games, through their parody and exaggerated narratives, reflect the zeitgeist of their respective eras. The syllabus includes a wide range of topics, including:

• The 1980s and Vice City: Students will use the neon-drenched, drug-fueled world of GTA: Vice City to study the deregulation of the 1980s, the rise of consumer culture, and the “War on Drugs.”
• The 1990s and San Andreas: The fictional Los Santos of GTA: San Andreas will be used as a case study for the social and political turmoil of the 1990s, including the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the growth of gang culture. Professor Olsson has stated that a key goal of the class is to explain the origins of this “violent convulsion” in a way that is often misunderstood.
• The Post-9/11 Era and Liberty City: The course will delve into the complexities of the early 2000s, using the bleak, satire-heavy world of GTA IV to discuss topics like post-9/11 security culture, immigration, and the financial crisis.
• Modern America and GTA V: The curriculum will use the modern-day Los Santos of GTA V to examine contemporary issues such as the housing crisis, social media culture, and the widening wealth gap. The in-game radio stations, which often feature sharp social commentary, will also be a key text for analysis.

Academic Relevance: Why This Course Matters

The launch of this course is a landmark moment in the history of higher education and the gaming industry. It demonstrates that academic institutions are starting to take video games seriously as a medium for learning and analysis. For decades, video games were often dismissed as a juvenile pastime, but their deep narratives, complex worlds, and reflections of real-world issues make them a powerful tool for teaching. This course’s existence helps legitimize game studies as a field and paves the way for future classes that use other games, like Assassin’s Creed for historical periods or Cyberpunk 2077 for discussions on transhumanism and corporate control.

While the class was originally planned to incorporate the highly anticipated GTA 6, which was delayed to May 26, 2026, Professor Olsson has confirmed that the class will go on as planned, focusing on the rich history of the previous titles. He has also expressed a desire to update the course to include GTA 6 in the future, highlighting the long-term potential of this new form of academic inquiry. The high-profile nature of this news is a major source of high-CPC keywords and discussion, proving that the influence of games extends far beyond the entertainment industry.