That says to me someone in the writing room is aware of the internet culture around Sonic.

I am now more interested in seeing this movie.

Oh, there was DEFINITELY Sonic fans involved because there's a bunch of little references and Easter eggs scattered throughout. People who actually cared about the series were involved and it shows. They even managed to put a little music from the games in.

Now, given, there's some obvious corporate meddling in the story, what with the forced road trip cliche and all that, but apart from that I'd say the movie is a solid family film and a love letter to fans of classic Sonic.