and with a strange substance that extends consciousness and allows folding space Sorry, couldn't resist

Actually that would make a pretty cool 4x mechanic. If there was one planet that generated a unique resource ie spice and if controlled gives that one player instantaneous movement across the galaxy.

But then I think a 4x scenario were an nearly unstoppable force is slowly devouring the universe one planet at a time would be interesting as well.

I wish someone would make a new Dune game.

I agree!

I think the key might be distribution of planets. Like in one part of the galaxy there are mostly desert planets and a single jungle planet. On the other part the opposite. But I don't know how to explain such distribution (there are no climatic zones in galaxy :D), I could explain some radiation in some parts of the map/galaxy, but the planets distribution should be similar everywhere...

I wish someone would make a new Dune game.

I agree!

I wouldn't count on it (it's impossible to get a licence). Anyway, I made a topic about it so you don't have to pollute my precioussss planets topic :) http://www.gamedev.net/topic/659183-why-dune-game-will-never-be-made-again/

What if you had a post collapse universe? So the game takes places thousands or millions of years after a grand intergalactic war ravaged the galaxy. The once great empires are now gone and the young races are venturing out into the galaxy for the first time.

You could have regions were bioweapons of destroyed most of the life on the planets.

Regions where the inhabits are former primitive slaves or experiments living on the hulking remains of once planet sized vessels.

Regions were ancient minefields making travelling dangerous.

Garden sectors were advance technology makes every world a gaia class planet but malfunction gardern drones attack incoming ships or maybe the weather net is hackable with the right level of tech.