Most of these games feel far more open than I can remember in a World Cup (been watching World Cups since 1994, but club soccer for way less longer).
I remember thinking the sport was boring and not realizing that it was because of the conservative play in a short knockout tournament and not inherently something wrong with football as a kid. But these games feel incredibly open. Something like Germany/Costa Rica, which was basically played like a basketball game for all of the second half, I can't really remember happening in past World Cups.