Do you find survival against the elements to be a compelling conflict?

I have a world where the main characters start in a desert that for a few reasons is almost completely inhospitable to most life. Most of the conflict the characters face right now is simply survival. I am releasing my work in volumes since it'll take a while to tell the story, but the first volume is almost all people trying to survive.

Would you say that that is enough to keep a reader engaged or are personal conflicts a better "north star"?