Shenmue IV is not currently in development - Romain Mahut

[jsh020]

For sequels already in the pipeline they generally begin development many months before the previous game has shipped.

maybe pre-planning, but this is really only for bigger studios that can actually afford the manpower to do that, and even then thats not the most common. YSnet was indefinitely working on the game full force for its final month or so, any work done for 4 is at the very most just foreword thinking of what they can reused or expand on, or what the general story it inteds to cover is.

 

[GM-Shenmue]

Spoiler

I presume something was saved for shenmue 4, like the fight with "mr.muscles" in the great wall of china from the teaser...unless it is totally cut...

 

[Dmitriy1]

From Resetera:

Don't they have to make DLCs? I bought a season pass. That might mean 3 DLCs, maybe with some story bits to fill out the chapters he can like that.