D&D General Settings of Hope vs Settings of Despair

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

one of the only fantasy settings with true hope.

... that isn't written by Sir Terry Pratchett.

 

[Scribe]

I just finished my Ravenloft campaign where while the PCs did much to stem the tide of darkness, but still the best they got was status quo. Things didn't get any better, but they also didn't get as bad as they could have.

Was that due to the setting quirk or just because thats how it ended up?