Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka would be interested in developing Sonic Adventure 3. Iizuka revealed this desire to continue the fan favourite series in a recent interview, and has got holding out hope that the long-awaited third game is still a possibility.
This comes as Iizuka reflects on the Sonic series going forward, with Frontiers set to put it in a very different direction. Despite also admitting that Sega now has both old and new fans to cater to, Iizuka's comments make it clear that developers at Sonic Team are aware that many players want Sonic Adventure 3, even after all this time.
"I've mentioned this in previous interviews, but I would like to continue the Sonic Adventure series", Iizuka told IGN, speaking about how Frontiers was influenced by these Dreamcast titles. "I haven't thought about my next game yet. But I personally think it'd be nice if we could use what we learn with this game in Sonic Adventure."
This pretty much confirms that Sonic Adventure 3 isn't being worked on right now. However, it does show that Iizuka at least considers it to be a possibility, and one that his team would have time for as he seemingly doesn't have a project planned for after Frontiers' launch this year.
This isn't the only allusion to Sonic Adventure we've seen recently. The Sonic the Hedgehog 2 movie ended with Shadow being discovered in a very similar fashion to his Sonic Adventure 2 debut, and it's been confirmed that the third film will draw inspiration from the game as a whole. With a new, younger audience being introduced to the Sonic Adventure storylines, it could give Sega the perfect opportunity to finish the trilogy.
In fact, another point Iizuka brings up in the interview could also point to Sonic Adventure 3 being a possibility. When discussing the future of the series, Iizuka mentions that Sega plans to "create more games like Sonic Frontiers that will delight 3D Sonic veterans". A Sonic Adventure game definitely fits the description there. But admittedly, 20 years of hurt could have us all reaching a bit.
In any case, Sonic Frontiers is set to launch December 2022. We'll have to wait and see what Sega has planned for us beyond that.