Nintendo skipped the 32-bit era, dismissing the Sega and Sony console threats while working on its own next-generation machine. The N64, released in the U.S. in 1996, gave a 64-bit boost to the company's classic hits, and featured the more 3-dimensional feel that gamers had come to crave. The N64's imagery was produced by Silicon Graphics, the computer company that brought tornadoes and dinosaurs to life on the big screen. While still a viable force in the gaming world, the N64 is beginning to show its age and gamers are anticipating the release of Nintendo's next console, the GameCube, in 2001.