I think the game the way it is currently set with the time limitation makes it unwelcoming for beginners and even not just for beginners, it's unwelcoming. The thought behind the octave being the next level up is that maybe people should find the note easier not because of the huge interval but because it's the same pitch but higher or lower.

Which I get, theoretically. But in practice, its a mess because I'm spending more time trying to control my pitch than on the pitch itself, if that makes sense. And you're right: the time limitation is also weird: it makes you feel like you should already know how to sing. Hopefully they will adjust a bit, because I'd love to work on sounding out pitches.

I agree with you 100% I don't need that time constraint at all it could be like the interval and chord games which are not time based yet still challenging enough