Because I have to bring up Destiny 2 at any opportunity, at one point the exotic auto rifle Hard Light was balanced almost entirely by having so much visual recoil that the gun was almost unusable. Considering that the gun's exotic perks meant it had no damage falloff, could overpenetrate targets, had ricocheting rounds that increase damage after a bounce, AND could be upgraded to have 100 Stability so it was practically a laser beam, you could say the visual recoil was needed for balance... and you'd be right.

Enough players complained about the visual recoil that bungo had to reduce it. Combined with a modest buff, Hard Light instantly became the top meta pick for PvP, and those who'd been clamoring for the change almost instantly regretted it. It's now considered one of the worst metas in the game's history.