Basically this. I have just realized that as a guy whos teens where in the 00's, my musical ear has been groomed by awesome videogames with great soundtracks, like Tony Hawk Pro Skater, Gran Turismo, later Need For Speed and some FIFA. But what's the equivalent in today's time?
I've bought a FIFA and a NFS recently, but the soundtracks are... OK-ish, I guess? I enjoyed the some Rocket League's season, though.
If you like more orchestral music checkout the soundtrack for Nier Automata. It came out a couple years ago and I find it great to listen to while working.
I'm playing it right now and I'm taken away by the soundtrack and how well it's merged within the gameplay. It's made in such a way that makes the game look like a movie you're directing. I'm marvelled.
You should check out the soundtrack for the original Nier as well, (Or Replicant I suppose). I fell in love with the OST back when Nier first released as Gestalt, and I still think it's better than Automata. Well except for the amusement park. That track slaps.
I was going to mention Nier Automata as well. I absolutely love music, but surprisingly don't really pay attention to it in the video game format but the soundtrack in Nier Automata is just so next level.
Hotline Miami and Midnight Fight Express also have very thumping soundtracks that both complement the gameplay.
I was going to ask for some recommendations on this vibe. I basically have this https://www.youtube.com/@Meisio channel's WOW OST playing on loop as I work. I like to mix it up a bit but often don't find the right vibe for music to work to as it's too distracting.
Honkai Impact: Star Rail has a legit quality sound design. The first boss ost is awesome. Been a while since I found this particular music genre done well in a video game.
Octopath Traveler's soundtrack is amazing. Only current/last gen soundtrack I own. The variety of styles and themes for the different paths and areas really helps make each one unique, and the battle themes are some of the best JRPGs have to offer.
Played fifa 22 when I had gamepass a few months ago and the soundtrack/collection of songs was pretty good I thought. Especially that last chance tune.
In addition to the Octopath mention, the Xenoblade Chronicles games have some absolutely stellar soundtracks.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has a night theme and day theme for each individual large area, and there are a lot of them, alongside a variety of battle music, insert tracks, and more. Each of the night/day themes share overlapping motifs, alongside motifs reflective of the larger music work as a whole.
Hades, Cult of the lamb. They are memorable because I'm playing it a lot. I've purchased both soundtracks - Hades OST is on Bandcamp, Cult of the lamb OST is on Steam.
Guilty Gear -STRIVE- is one that really stood out to me recently. It's was my first exposure to the series, but I really enjoy how they use each character's theme as a chance to flesh them out and tell their story.
Katana ZERO ended up being a standout soundtrack to me as well. I think the impact is greater if your first exposure to them is in the context of playing the game, but the tracks do stand really well on their own merits too.
I'd also mention Paradise Killer for a really entrancing exploration of City Pop, Jazz Fusion, some Funk, and other such genres. IMO the OST is the secret sauce for the game's setting and mood in a really fundamental way.
Back on more mainstream games, Yasunori Nishiki's work on the soundtracks for both Octopath Traveler 1 & 2 is outstanding. For anyone on board with the style of music typical of JRPG soundtracks, they are very worth your time.