hm.
C:U is a really sad game, obviously, but i think theres something about the little joys that can be found in it anyway. your expie is so happy whenever they get to eat geofruit, or apple juice, or a whole steak. the fact they get a mood boost when you find a trader to sleep next to.
the desperate pleading for more time, just a bit more time when they're bleeding out, even though they know they'll just be prolonging the inevitable. your expie can want to live so badly they come back from the dead.
i think thats what makes C:U feel so full of hope to me. that even in such a bleak, hostile, hopeless place, they still just want to live. just a bit more, just a little longer, because even if they never see the sun again, they might be able to eat some geofruit, or drink some apple juice, or sleep next to someone else, one last time.