Machinarium places the role of technology and invention in a new light. As you may recall, Josef is discarded in a junkyard in the first moment of the game. He is obsolete, an undesired presence in a city consumed by a technocratic hierarchy. And yet he is filled with sentiment, with energy and exceptional intelligence. For the most part, unsophisticated robots in the city tend to occupy servant roles and unwanted functions. They can be found in the lower spacial strata, which in itself is a telling visual aid. Older models struggle to remain functional and evade obsolescence. In fact the city evasion scene at the end, which is very reminiscent of Film Noir's desire to escape from the claws of the unforgiving city, indicates how he has in fact achieved a higher and liberating sense of consciousness about himself and his role in the world; as opposed to his automated brethren, still latched onto their preset functions which they carry out ad infinitum.

This powerful metaphor is also a cautionary tale of sorts which suggests that our wasteful society has grown accustomed to being too quick to discard technology as a part of a cycle fueled by the perpetual yearning for what is new; offering no second life to what is suddenly considered archaic and unwanted. There's a hint of ecological thinking in this as well.

It also speaks of the conditions in which the game was created. Machinarium plays much like an old computer point-and-click adventure, for one, and can be played in most any computer without concerns for hardware requirements. It relies far more on skilled artistry – animation, visual and sound design – than in technology itself. Amanita continues to make games using vulgar and, to an extent, outmoded game creation tools due to their accessibility. As such, their games display what can be achieved when the gift of invention takes precedence over the obsession for state-of-the-art technology.

It's hard to know what Josef's motivations are, I think. It's worth noting that Josef and his girlfriend leave the planet as soon as possible in the climax of the game. You can read the king as a benevolent to the certain extent, but Josef goes to great lengths to leave both the King and the Black Hat Gang as soon as he's able.

I think it's why the Samorost-bot section is so arresting and effective — it disturbs the relationship b/w Josef and the Gang by introducing the possibility that the King condones or benefits from some sort of vague imperialism/slaving operation.

I'll concede your point as far as the Royal Robot goes — "colloquial" isn't the right adjective there. I first game across the term in some forum or other a few years ago when I first played the game, and it stuck. There are, however, several references online to the character as the "King" or "Master" robot, so I don't think I'm off track in reading him as a powerful, authoritative figure.