De acordo com o Produtor do Imperador: Battle for Dune, a série de jogos (Emperor sendo a sequência direta de Dune 2000) foi marcada vários séculos antes dos eventos dos romances Dune
IGNPC: Tell us a little bit about the story if you can. We know you said that the game take place a few centuries before the story in the novels, but can you be more specific about the setting for the conflict?
Chris Longpre: The Emperor has been assassinated by the Lady Alara (in Dune 2000), leaving no heir and a huge power vacuum. Each house is laying claim to the throne, but each realizes that controlling Arrakis, home of the spice, is the key to winning the Imperial throne. It finally blossoms into war among the three most powerful houses, the noble Atreides, the insidious Ordos and the evil Harkonnen.