Balough, Sega's former associate brand manager, said that Sonic's appeal endured because the character is "a gaming legend, first and foremost" who originated "from a series of games that defined a generation in gaming history, and his iconic personality was the epitome of speed in the early ‘90s, pushing the limits of what gamers knew and expected from high-speed action and platforming games." A Japanese team developing the Radio & Plasma Wave Investigation (RPWI) instrumentation for the upcoming Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer spacecraft, to be launched by ESA and Airbus in 2022, was able to gain Sega's approval to use Sonic as the mascot for the device. An Internet meme called "Sanic" has been used based on a poorly drawn Sonic; typically, the meme uses one of Sonic's catchphrases but with poor grammar. Sega's official Sonic Twitter account has made numerous references to it, and it appeared in official downloadable content for Sonic Forces on in-game shirts. The meme also appears as a drawing in the theatrical film. Notes References External links Official character profiles on Sonic Central and Sonic-City (archived) Sonic the Hedgehog on Sonic Channel (in Japanese) Sonic the Hedgehog on IMDb Animal characters in video games Animal superheroes Anthropomorphic mammals Anthropomorphic video game characters Corporate mascots Fictional characters introduced in 1991 Fictional characters who can manipulate time Fictional hedgehogs Fictional prison escapees Male characters in advertising Male characters in film Male characters in television Male characters in video games Mascots introduced in 1991 Sega protagonists Sonic the Hedgehog characters Super Smash Bros. fighters Teenage characters in film Teenage characters in video games Video game bosses Video game characters introduced in 1991 Video game characters who can move at superhuman speeds Video game mascots Video game superheroes