An US University will be offering a Grand Theft Auto history course starting in early 2026. The class will be the first time that a history college course has been built upon Grand Theft Auto, but not the first time that a Rockstar Games title has been the focus.
Over the course of Grand Theft Auto's series, the games have featured different time periods, ranging from as far back as the 1960s to the present era. Grand Theft Auto Vice City brought players to the 1980s, while San Andreas was set in the 1990s. This puts Grand Theft Auto in an interesting place, where players can play the series and get a glimpse into a semi-realistic fictional depiction of what life was like in those given decades. It seems it's this aspect of the franchise that made one college professor think it was a good fit for a history course.
In January 2026, the University of Tennessee will begin offering a course called "Grand Theft America: U.S. History Since 1980 through the GTA Video Games". The course will be taught by history professor Tore Olsson, who previously offered a similar course looking at American history through...
