Buffon listed Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Germany as favourites to win the tournament in Brazil, with Italy among the dark horses who are a rung below.
"If we get to the quarter-finals or further, it will have been a positive World Cup," the 36-year-old told reporters.
"We have a mature team which knows its own limitation and, because of this, we are a dependable side who win the matches we are expected to win.
"Sometimes we manage to cause surprises in the games in which we don't start as favourites, giving the opposition some headaches," added Buffon.
Buffon, a World Cup winner in 2006, will be taking part in his fifth successive World Cup although he did not play in 1998, when he was an unused squad member.