Chameleon all the way. I got an '05 frame cheap of ebay, dumped a few parts off my '03 Specialized bighit, added a Sherman firefly and some magura gustavs. I find myself able to handle XC stuff and can jump/drop better than i could on my full suspension Big hit. I think your ability to XC easier/freestyle easier will come down to how big/heavy a fork you put on.