Back in 2019, I managed to acquire an SGI Onyx Supercomputer from 1993 equipped with the RealityEngine2 graphics card.

This was a $250,000.00 Graphics Supercomputer that was primarily used for processing real-time graphics for Flight Simulators. However, they were also being used in the Film industry to process cutting edge CGI graphics for films like Toy Story and Jurassic Park.

At the same time, these machines were used to process graphics in the videogame industry. For both SNES & early N64 game development. As an example they were used to pre-render Super Nintendo sprite graphics, for games such as Donkey Kong Country (Rare Ltd. 1994).

These supercomputers took on the role as a high-speed rendering server to assist other SGI Indy workstations with rendering tasks. Connected over a LAN network, multiple workstations would cooperatively process complex high-res graphics, and were usually running 24/7.

Systems like the SGI “Onyx” and SGI “Challenge” were used in early N64 development (Project Reality), for games such as GoldenEye 007 by the company Rare Ltd.

During the early development stages on GoldenEye 007 for the Ultra64, developers from SGI and Rare Ltd. worked together to develop a special proprietary software Simulator based on the very first versions of OpenGL. (This was essentially a ROM emulator program) It was used to run and test the very first compiled N64 game ROMS on the Onyx. However according to former Rare developer, Martin Hollis (Project Leader on GoldenEye 007), it would only run at adequate speed on the Onyx.

https://twitter.com/martinhollis/post

This OpenGL simulator was necessary as the N64 console did not exist yet, and was still in the design stages. With no actual hardware to test new compiled code on, a proprietary emulator was the obvious solution. This allowed RARE developers to at least move forward with the development of GoldenEye.

A Special Graphics software was developed specifically for Nintendo Artist called “NINGEN”. It was used to design and edit 3D models and 3D environment backgrounds. It was a special build of the popular MultiGEN graphics software that was used in Flight Simulators. However this build targeted the specific graphics and hardware requirements for the Ultra64 (Project Rreality).

The NINGEN software was installed on the many SGI Indy workstations and graphics designers would submit their compiling projects over the network into a que for the ONYX machines to process.

I do plan on covering this system in an upcoming video for my YouTube channel. So keep a lookout for new posts in the future. 😛 Gerry’s YouTube Channel