I'm going to occasionally put in a good word for soundtracks that I don't see getting much attention in this thread (even if I don't end up voting for them), and I'll start things off with
Tekken Tag Tournament 2.
I'm far from an expert on the genre, but I tend to not like dubstep music. Like, at all. It doesn't help that video game trailers have been inundated with it lately. This is why I was so surprised to find myself loving Tekken Tag Tournament 2's soundtrack this year. It uses dubstep and other types of electronic dance music in very inventive ways.
For an example of this, listen to my favorite song on the soundtrack,
What you will see (Heavenly Garden). Reflecting the transition that takes place in the stage itself, the song takes a sudden turn towards dubstep and a generally rougher sound halfway through, but it doesn't feel out of place at all. Once the two tracks start to play alongside eachother, the effect is really striking.
Tekstep Fountain is another song that comes with a twist: it's dubstep with an orchestral chorus! Akitaka Tohyama's inclusion of the strings here is absolutely brilliant.
Another highlight: the unorthodox, but very relaxing,
ending credits theme "Night Falls." The acoustic guitar goes surprisingly well with the electronic pieces.
In addition to the original pieces, the soundtrack also comes loaded with a lot of interesting remixes of older songs. The trancey take on the old
Sakura Schoolyard theme is a lot of fun, even with the old one having been so thoroughly burned into my head many years ago.
In short, don't pass this up if you have any interest in at all electronic music. It has some of the most creative arrangements that I've heard from a video game soundtrack in quite a while.