I think your original post said it best. There is a sense of loneliness in the world they created. It makes me wonder if it was intentional. I was surprised to learn through the app that you can create and join groups. There is no link to this in-game and there are very few social interactions between characters at all. I can't figure out if this was a clever design decision against a vast and quiet space setting, or just a tragic mistake in what was supposed to be an MMOFPS. I want to believe the former, but it's more likely the latter unfortunately.