I dunno man. Shoe color is a pretty basic thing to mess up.
I don't feel like it's really a mess-up. SEGA probably just had them prioritize one mode over the other, and it wound up being vehicle mode. Probably because Sonic Racing CrossWorlds is coming out soon, too.
I remember them being pretty rigid with Nintendo on Smash Bros. alts, too, upsetting fans with Brawl (though I think they've loosened up since).
But one thing that
could change?
Shoe color.