Both x86, and 68xxx started that way. Old silicon actually game had a premium for smarter cores, which can do tricks like µOp fusions to compensate for smaller

Both x86, and 68xxx started that way. Old silicon actually game had a premium for smarter cores, which can do tricks like µOp fusions to compensate for smaller decoders. RISC was originally about getting reasonably small cores, which can do what they are advertised, and nothing more, and µOp fusing was certainly outside of that scope. Now, silicon is definitely cheaper, and both decoders, and other front-end smarts are completely microscopic in comparison to other parts of a modern SoC.