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Sega's original hardware dev discusses SEGA Genesis creation
Coming from SEGA original hardware dev, Masami Ishikawa...
“Yes, the designs for the graphics parts had already begun, and we had an issue regarding the cost, as it was quite a late stage when he had decided on the main CPU would be the 68000 (Motorola 68000 processor). The reason we used two CPUs was because we believed that the load would be too heavy, had we used one to handle both sound and visuals. Due to that reason, we used the Z-80 as a sub-CPU to handle the sound, which reduced the load on the main CPU while maintaining compatibility. What became the base of the board was the one that was already being used for arcades, with the addition of the 68000 and Z-80 on the System 16. There was a time when it was said to make it 16-bit if we wanted to take a big step for home consoles.”
Full interview here
“Yes, the designs for the graphics parts had already begun, and we had an issue regarding the cost, as it was quite a late stage when he had decided on the main CPU would be the 68000 (Motorola 68000 processor). The reason we used two CPUs was because we believed that the load would be too heavy, had we used one to handle both sound and visuals. Due to that reason, we used the Z-80 as a sub-CPU to handle the sound, which reduced the load on the main CPU while maintaining compatibility. What became the base of the board was the one that was already being used for arcades, with the addition of the 68000 and Z-80 on the System 16. There was a time when it was said to make it 16-bit if we wanted to take a big step for home consoles.”