A heartbreaking tribute is hidden within the massive new game 'Apex Legends'

EA/Respawn Entertainment

• A handful of Easter Eggs are hidden in the massive world of "Apex Legends."
• One such Easter Egg is a small replica of the so-called "Loch Ness Monster," which has been a staple of previous games from the studio.
• Players found one especially interesting Easter Egg feature a plush dog surrounded by photos - and it turns out that the secret is a tribute to the lead level designer's dog Shadie.

During the development of "Apex Legends," something terrible happened to the game's lead level designer: His dog Shadie died suddenly.

"This was a crushing blow to my morale and made many days hard to come to work," Respawn Entertainment lead level designer Jason McCord said on Twitter. "Shadie was our best friend."

His way of processing grief was to create a loving tribute to Shadie within the massive map he was creating for "Apex Legends," known as "Kings Canyon" in the game.

EA/Respawn Entertainment

In the last week, over 25 million people have explored Kings Canyon - and with all those new people exploring it, people quickly found McCord's tribute. 

As you can see above in the image snapped by Kotaku, McCord made a plushie version of Shadie, put the pooch on a pillow, and surrounded her with framed photos of herself as well as one of McCord and his partner "for solidarity."

As McCord put it, "I wanted her to live on in this little corner of the map.  It legit makes me feel better to visit this area sometimes."

Here's the larger version of the photo of Shadie in the game, care of McCord's Twitter feed:

If you're looking for Shadie's Easter Egg yourself, head to the Market area of the map and keep an eye out for heartbreaking tributes.

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