>>52648717I find the case of these three interesting:
Although Lillie did not start the trend of focusing the story on an NPC (I think the credit goes to N) she is the pinnacle of this formula, to the extent that the MC is just an accessory for her. And while it was accepted by the general public, it was a big complaint from the players.
With Marnie they tried to tone this down to the point of making her unnecessary to the main plot, to the point that she was just a literal who? in the anime.
For the next generation the role of "The girl" should be for Penny, while Nemona should be another rival like Hau and Hop were, but here comes the twist, the community in general ended up loving this crazy girl and they practically forgot of Penny, to the point that many want future DLCs to focus on Nemona's background.
If I were GF I would stop trying to emulate previous ideas and give creative freedom to writers and designers, in the end the public never knows what they want.
Note: Obviously I am generalizing, I make the clarification before any waifufag feels attacked. 
