HARDlight is a UK-based game developer, which has been a part of Sega's European branch, with an impressive resume of mobile games. This includes titles like Crazy Taxi and ChuChu Rocket! Universe for platforms like Apple Arcade. The studio however is best known for the multiple Sonic the Hedgehog mobile games that have been released, such as the multiplayer racing game Sonic Forces Speed Battle, which contains a number of playable fan-favorite characters, some even originating from the current IDW Comics run.
Recently, new details have popped up regarding Sega HARDlight Studio, which gives fans an indication of the developer's next project. This was a new job listing, with the company searching for a Lead Artist position for a new platform game. This is usually a position that is required for core development, which indicates that this project is still early in development. Regardless, this position seems could be for a new mobile Sonic the Hedgehog game, given the studio's history in developing mobile titles for the series.
This Sega HARDlight job listing indicates that it will be for a game that is described to be a platformer, which would fit the mold of the Sonic series. Moreover, it states that this game is looking to be a "narrative-driven" platformer, which would be different from the approaches that other games developed by the studio have done. The job listing itself also notes that while it's acknowledged to be a mobile game, it's looking to be something on-par with console video games.
Interestingly enough, this job position seems to possibly line up with a leak that was posted on 4chan. This leak accurately detailed a number of Sonic-related news, such as the Sonic Origins collection announcement, Sonic Frontiers news throughout June, as well as the preview of the Sonic Prime show on Netflix Geeked. It also spoke of an upcoming project from Hardlight, where they described it as "Genshin Impact but with Sonic."
The description of a narrative-based platformer does seem to fit the possibility of HARDlight developing a Genshin Impact-esque mobile game for Sonic, given Genshin's mobile origins. This leak also states that this project will shift HARDlight's priorities away from Sonic Forces: Speed Battle, with the game expected to close in the next few years. A 2D game is also expected to be shown off next year, which will feature Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, along with Shadow the Hedgehog in his first playable appearance in 2D. That said, fans should take this leak with a massive amount of salt until an official announcement is made.
A new Sonic the Hedgehog mobile game is rumored to be in development.
Source: Sega