Paraguay's shootout victory against Japan on Tuesday was the first knockout game to be decided by penalties at this World Cup and it's unlikely to be the last.
Since penalty shootouts were introduced at the finals 28 years ago, there have been an average of almost three per tournament, with highs of four in 1990 and 2006.
Germany won the first penalty shootout in the World Cup, beating France in the 1982 semifinal.
Two World Cup finals have also been decided from the spot. Brazil took the title in 1994 in a shootout win over Italy, while the Italians found redemption in 2006, beating France.
After 120 minutes of play, many consider penalties to be a cruel method of deciding drawn matches but the drama of the one-on-one shootout is undeniable.
The other problem is that nobody has come up with a credible alternative. Golden goals - where the first team to score in extra time wins - have been tried in the World Cup, but there's no guarantee a team will score and penalties are often needed anyway.
A player's ability seems to have little to do with his chances of scoring from the spot - and practice doesn't really help.
``We practiced penalty kicks once, so nobody could say we weren't prepared,'' Uruguay coach Gerardo Martino said ahead of his side's shootout win Tuesday. ``But our executions weren't too good.
``You can't recreate the environment you'll face in a real game, with 40,000 fans.''
Mental strength seems to have as much to do with a successful penalty as technique.
``Character plays a big role,'' Martino said. ``What can you say when (Oscar) Cardozo asks to kick the fifth penalty and he does it the way he did it?''
Oliver Kahn, the former Germany and Bayern Munich goalkeeper, spoke about the art of saving penalties in Johannesburg on Friday.
``You can read a lot from the body language of the shooter and where he will be shooting,'' Kahn said. ``It is a psychological game between the goalkeeper and the taker. It has a lot to do with eye contact and body language.''
Preparation can pay off as well. When Germany beat Argentina in the 2006 quarterfinal, goalkeeper Jens Lehmann took a cheat sheet out of his sock with information on the Argentine penalty takers and which way they usually took their kicks.
Ahead of this year's repeat quarterfinal, Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero said his team had learnt from the experience.
``In that moment it was a very smart move on their (Germany's) part, saving a piece of paper to know who was going to take the kick,'' he said. ``This time we have to be well prepared for everything.''
The format creates instant heroes - and instant villains. German striker Horst Hrubesch was the first player to taste the glory of firing the winning penalty, beating French goalkeeper Jean-Luc Ettori in his country's 1982 victory.
Perhaps the most costly miss was by Italy's Roberto Baggio, who skied his penalty in the 1994 final to hand the cup to Brazil.
Baggio is in good company. Among those who also found the pressure of a free kick from 12 yards too much to bear are France's Michel Platini, Brazil's Socrates, England's Steven Gerrard - and Diego Maradona.
Maradona missed Argentina's third penalty against Yugoslavia in the 1990 quarterfinal - but the pain was soothed considerably as Argentina won 3-2 in the end.
Some nations seem more blessed than others when it comes to penalties. Germany has a perfect record of four wins from four shootouts, while Brazil also has a good record, winning two out of three, including the 1994 final.
Penalties are dreaded in England, however, and with good reason.
England has lost all three shootouts in World Cups. Stuart Pearce and Chris Waddle missed as the side crashed out of the 1990 semifinal to Germany, while Argentina won the sides' second round clash in 1998 and Portugal was the victor in the 2006 quarter.
Italy lost three shootouts in three consecutive tournaments from 1990 to 1998, but hit the jackpot in the 2006 final when all five Italians converted, including Fabio Grosso's winner.
Even science is stumped when it comes to finding the secret behind a successful shootout strategy.
American doctoral student Gabriel J. Diaz of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute tried to identify the tell-tale signs given away by players' body movements when taking their kick during a recent study.
Despite the tests, cameras, software and sensors, as well as computer analysis, the results were inconclusive.
``Professional soccer players may not have the luxury of that extra time, and also professional soccer players are much better at placing the ball at the further side of the goal,'' Diaz said. ``I can't say for sure in real world situations what would be the best thing for the goalkeeper to do.''
