No, but a woman is killed in the beginning, which happens rather close to the player's character. While it is a shocking scene, there are more execution scenes later on in the game that play out similarly.
Although there aren't many women in the game, most are well-rounded characters with distinct personalities. There are women from all classes and factions (nobility, simple civilians, Weepers, Whalers). They are allies and villains. Even the literal sex workers aren't highly sexualized. They all are stylized in the same way as the men and do not suffer from "pretty same-face syndrome."
The player can eliminate the targets who have wronged them in a non-lethal way. But I wouldn't say this is the same as forgiveness. Usually, the non-lethal ways are the same as, if not worse as killing them.
Depends. The player can go for high chaos, brutally murder opponents who had imprisoned them or they can find a non-lethal way that is sometimes worse than death (ex. Hand Lady Boyle over to her stalker)
Not shown on screen, but the Hound Pits pub, where your charecter stays, was used for dog fighting, and there is a line of dialog from the heart about it. Various posters around the city also advertise dog fights.
Not directly mentioned but the “courtesans” at the brothel, as mentioned by a note you can pick up, were brought there against their will for sexual slavery.
In the beginning, the protagonist is being held in a chair with wrist locks. Later in-game, you have to option to put someone else in the same chair.
Slackjaw can be locked by Granny Rags near the end of the game.
The player can choke enemies out from behind until they fall unconscious, and is the primary elimination method for enemies in non-lethal playthroughs.
There is a torturer at work in the basement of dunwal tower.
Additionally, there is a torture scene directly after the main title shows- the protagonist is interrogated and burned with a hot poker. This is in first person, so if you are sensitive to torture scenes you might want to skip this part. During the escape from coleridge prison, you also enter a torture chamber, and have the option to listen to an audio clip, where an interrogator talks about the protagonists torture.
More scenes of torture:
-There is the option to release a bunch of rats into a cage with solkolov after you kidnap him
-during the house of pleasure misson you can zap an art dealer with electricity until he gives you the code to his safe
-during the high overseer mission, the none lethal option involves knocking him unconscious, dragging him into a torture chamber, and branding him with acid while he screams
-in the brigamore witches dlc, during the coleridge prison break, you can go into a torture chamber and see the remains of a victem, as well as hear an audio clip of them (and the guards) dying
- also in the brigamore witches dlc: if you chose to kill edgar wakefield in the Dead Eels mission, you will be treated to a cutscene where you very slowly force your blade through his eye and out the back of his head.
In the brigamore witches dlc, there is a very graphic eye mutilation scene. It occurs during the dead eels mission, if you choose to kill edgar wakefield. Your sword goes directly through his eye in the cutscene that triggers.
In the Knife of Dunwall and Brigmore Witches DLC, your companion NPC sometimes appears out of nowhere. It's accompanied by a woosh sound effect that might startle some players.
You can get a superpower to summon rats who will attack and eat your opponents. Early in the game, there's a scene where two guards get eaten by a swarm of rats. Can be missed if you're not looking, but the level is design in a way, it's hard to miss the scene.
When you kill enemies, you can hear their bodies being ripped apart or bones cracking (depending on the way you kill them)
The sound of your sword slashing enemies is often heard.
In the house of pleasure mission, one of the customers is hooked up to an electrocution rig. You have the option to use this to torture the code to his safe out of him. Additionally, in the knife of dunwal dlc, you can put a man in an electric chair, and use it to torture him.
In High Chaos, a character threatens to jump to their death, bringing a child with them. Another says they will return to nothing and then shoots themself unless interrupted.
You can crawl through tight spaces and possess rats to run through narrow vents. Neither is portrayed as claustrophobic and the player's control is not restricted.
There is a villain who got confirmed to be asexual by Harvey Smith, but there's nothing in-game showing this. All actions against the character has nothing to do with his asexuality, nor is he a villain because of it.
Piero Joplin spies on Callista while she is bathing.
The sex workers at the Golden Cat wear sexy underwear but it's fairly mild compared to other games with sex workers in them.
Gore is heavily featured throughout the game. Decapitation, rats eating dead bodies, body parts being cut off, etc. Some of it can be avoided in a pacifist run, but there is still a lot of unavoidable depictions of both blood and gore throughout the game.
Undead Dogs show up in the DLC in the form of skulls that transform into weird monsters that have bodies made out of thorns with dog skulls for heads.