In this third episode of Arkane's developer documentary for Dishonored, it shows us how we can play the game in different ways. One of the few things they're reinforcing is how the game is not constricted to just one play-style.
Christophe Carrier, lead designer for Dishonored, states that their design philosophy was, "everything the player wants to do, the player should be able to do it." This applies to traversing the environment, as well as to killing off your foes.
While the game won't offer complete freedom like Grand Theft Auto or similar games, it does give you a multitude of powers to fool around with. Corvo can use his summoning skills, Blink ability, and more to get the job done.
It's a different sort of freedom but one that's welcome nonetheless. Stuff like these are what made BioShock so special, right? Of course, there's the narrative, too. Let's hope Dishonored can nail that one as well.
Dishonored is set for release on October 9 for the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.