During development for the console, Sega Enterprises in Japan focused on developing action games while Sega of America was tasked with developing sports games.

Top sellers included Sonic the Hedgehog, its sequel Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Disney's Aladdin. The initial pack-in title was Altered Beast, which was later replaced with Sonic the Hedgehog. The Genesis library was initially modest, but eventually grew to contain games to appeal to all types of players. Many games have also been re-released in compilations for newer consoles and offered for download on various digital distribution services, such as Virtual Console, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Steam. Licensed third party re-releases of the console are still being produced, and several indie game developers continue to produce games for it. The console and its games continue to be popular among fans, collectors, video game music fans, and emulation enthusiasts. The Sega Genesis also sported numerous peripherals, including the Sega CD and Sega 32X, several network services, and multiple first-party and third-party variations of the console that focused on extending its functionality.

It can also play the complete library of Master System games when the separately sold Power Base Converter is installed. The system supports a library of 880 games created both by Sega and a wide array of third-party publishers and delivered on ROM cartridges.

First released in Japan on October 29, 1988, in North America on Augand in PAL regions in 1990, the Genesis is Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. The Sega Genesis, known as the Mega Drive in regions outside of North America, is a 16-bit video game console that was developed and sold by Sega.

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