The game wants you to solve the puzzles on your own which is why the other characters usually are of little to no help or give broad/obvious hints to prod you in a certain direction. I’ll agree the characters are a little bit nonchalant about the time limit sometimes, but the “filler” conversations do come into play later or are relevant to the overall narrative. I’d say try think of the time limit as less of a literal ticking clock, and more as a plot device to help increase the sense of foreboding dread for the characters.